A syringe safety device is disclosed herein that comprises a shaft configured to support a barrel of a syringe, a guard configured to be disposed inside the shaft before the syringe is used and to extend outwardly from the shaft after the syringe is used, and a lock disposed between the guard and the shaft having a lock head disposed at a first end thereof, the lock head being disposed in a first aperture in the shaft before the syringe is used and in a second aperture in the shaft after the syringe has been used. A method of using the device also is described.