Here we are in 2024 and this bug is alive and well. Congratulations to the coders on managing to preserve it through numerous updates since the last commenter.

Not to sure how old this post is but I managed to fix mine on iMac.

Go to system preference, accessibility, scroll down to keyboard and make sure that the option for enable full keyboard access is not ticked. boom working 100% now

I'm super new to InDesign. So new that today is my very first time using and learning it.
I'm following along to a video tutorial, and the first time I've gone to use the selection tool, it's stuck on the hand.

Just what my ADHD needed, something to send me off on a tangent with, into the rabbit hole of "I must find the fix".

What I found was, it's the wrong tool.

All the instructions and videos I found use the selection tool that I call the dark one. Its the triangle curser looking thing that has the light outline and dark fill.
To get the functions that all the instructions show I should get with the dark one, and NOT the hand, I have to use the other selection tool. I call it the light one. It looks exactly the same as the dark one, except its filled.

InDesign calls them Selection Tool and Direct Selection tool. I'm assuming mine are switched for some reason.

If you've been using InDesign for a while, and you're reading this thinking, "duh, we already know they are switched. Thats not the issue!" ok cool. I didn't know that, and I haven't helped. I'd rather post it and be useless, than not say anything and not maybe help someone resolve this thing that looks like its been a problem for over 10 years. :)

Have a great day.

Ctrl (or Command) + space bar will revert the tool back to the selection tool. Mine was stuck in hand tool mode after my cat walked across my keyboard. I just tried a ton of keyboard shortcuts until one worked.

Hope this helps.

Im on v15 and I just started to have this issue. This is extremely frustrating.

Just did latest update to v15.1.1 and it just started to have this issue.

Having same problem with hand tool. Any solutions yet?

Having same problem. All tools are stuck or revert to hand tool

I am also experiencing this issue on Macbook Air 10.12.6. I have used InDesign for years with no issue, but this week, during Finals at school of course, my Indesign hand tool has become stuck. I will click on the Text tool, go to type and it switches to hand tool or a white circle that drags the screen. I tried clicking all over and hitting the spacebar -- No luck.

I first thought it was an issue on my end and switched my trackpad settings in system preferences. No Luck.

Then, I tried to quit InDesign and restart. Created a new file, no luck. I uninstalled and reinstalled, no luck. I signed out and signed back into Creative Cloud, nope.

I cleared my computer Cache on Adobe Indesign, deleted my system preferences, created new preferences and adjusted the hand tool settings, reset my tools, reset my workspace, reset my computer, turned off FTP proxy on my wifi settings, NOTHING and I mean NOTHING I have tried has worked.

I don't believe this is an issue on my end, but a performance issue with the latest version of InDesign. From what I've read in Adobe Community, I am not the only one. It's upsetting paying so much for this program and not having it work.

It's not good enough to close down the discussion on this issue.
I just upgraded to ID2020 15.0 today, under OSX 10.14.6.
Suddenly this issue. Never had it before. Yes, I'm running other software, but if that causes a roadbock bug it's still Adobe's problem to solve. I problem I didn't have yesterday, but I do have today, since upgrading to 15.0.
Problem does clear after a tiny little restart... every 5 minutes.
We're trying to make a living here!!!

If you wait at least 5 minutes the hand turns back to a pointer.