The Joomla! system places these padlocks next to an item to indicate that a user is currently editing the item (i.e. the item is “checked out”). The lock is removed by the system administrator when the user clicks on the “Save” button for that item. If the user never clicks “Save” and instead hits the “Back” button or navigates to another page, then the item remains locked. If a different user needs to work with an item that is in the “checked out” state he or she must first ask a manager or administrator to check the item in before any new changes can be made.