How to lock photos on iPhone

Locking is a step beyond hiding: instead of moving photos out of sight, you put an authentication prompt in front of them. iOS gives you several ways to do that, each covering a different scope, from one album to the whole app. The method you pick depends mostly on one question: who already knows your iPhone passcode?

Method 1: the locked Hidden album

The simplest lock is the one iOS already applies. Since iOS 16, the Hidden album and Recently Deleted album require Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode to open.

1. Open a photo, tap More (•••) and choose Hide.
2. Go to Settings › Apps › Photos in iOS 18 and later (Settings › Photos on iOS 16 and 17).
3. Make sure Use Face ID (or Use Touch ID / Use Passcode) is on.

This locks only what you have hidden. The rest of your library stays open to anyone who picks up your unlocked phone. The full walkthrough, including how to remove the Hidden album from view, is in how to hide photos on iPhone.

Method 2: lock the whole Photos app (iOS 18 and later)

iOS 18 introduced app locking, a system feature that puts a Face ID, Touch ID or passcode prompt in front of an app every time it opens.

1. On the Home Screen or in the App Library, touch and hold the Photos icon.
2. Choose Require Face ID (the label matches your device’s authentication method).
3. Confirm with Face ID or your passcode.

Once Photos is locked, content from it is also kept out of places like Search results and notification previews. To undo it, touch and hold the icon again and choose the option to stop requiring Face ID.

Two caveats. Apple’s own apps can be locked but generally cannot be hidden in the Hidden apps folder, so anyone can still see that Photos is there. And the lock is about opening the Photos app itself; it does not change which other apps have access to your library. Check that list in Settings › Privacy & Security › Photos, or read which apps can see your photos.

App locking is a good fit if you hand your phone to children or colleagues and want the whole library off-limits, not just a few photos.

Method 3: put photos in a locked note

A locked note is a note in the Apple Notes app that is encrypted and requires a password, Face ID or your passcode to view. Notes can contain photos and videos, which makes them an improvised photo lock.

1. In Notes, create a note and add photos with the camera button (take a new photo, or choose from your library).
2. Tap More (•••) and choose Lock.
3. The first time, choose whether to use your iPhone passcode or a separate Notes password. This is set in Settings › Apps › Notes › Password on iOS 18 and later.

Choosing a separate Notes password is the one built-in option where your device passcode alone does not open the content. If you forget that password, Apple cannot recover the notes.

The downsides are practical. Notes is not a photo viewer: browsing dozens of images is awkward, and videos are clumsy. Photos you add from your library are copies, so the originals remain in Photos until you delete them. Locked notes also sync through iCloud if Notes is set to use iCloud. The page Velcrypt vs Apple Notes locked notes compares the two in more depth.

Method 4: an encrypted vault app

A vault app stores copies of your photos in its own encrypted storage and has its own lock. The important difference is independence: the lock is not your device passcode, so people who know that passcode still cannot open the vault.

Vault apps vary widely. Some use a PIN, some a pattern, some disguise themselves as a calculator; some upload to their own cloud and need an account, others stay on the device. Before trusting one, look at how it encrypts, where data goes, and what happens if you forget the code. Are photo vault apps safe? has a checklist.

The four methods side by side

	Hidden album	Locked Photos app	Locked note	Vault app
What gets locked	Hidden items only	Whole Photos app	Contents of that note	Whatever you import
Unlock method	Face ID / Touch ID / passcode	Face ID / Touch ID / passcode	Passcode or separate Notes password	The app’s own secret
Opens with device passcode	Yes	Yes	Yes, unless you use a separate password	Depends on the app
Built in	Yes, iOS 16+	Yes, iOS 18+	Yes	No
Syncs to iCloud	With iCloud Photos	With iCloud Photos	With iCloud Notes	Depends on the app
Good for browsing	Yes	Yes	Not really	Usually

Choosing a lock

If nobody else knows your passcode and you mainly want to stop casual scrolling, the Hidden album or app lock is enough, and both are free and built in.

If a partner, parent or anyone else knows your passcode, every built-in method except a separately passworded note can be opened by them. That is the situation where an independent lock earns its keep.

It is also worth thinking about biometrics. Face ID is quick, but a face can be presented without real consent. Pattern lock vs PIN vs Face ID weighs these unlock methods against each other.

Where Velcrypt fits

Velcrypt is a vault in the fourth category. It deliberately has no Face ID or Touch ID: you unlock it by drawing a pattern on a 5×5 grid of dots, at least six dots with at least one change of direction, and longer patterns are better. That pattern exists only in your memory and is unrelated to your iPhone passcode.

Content is encrypted on the device with AES-256-GCM, the vault locks automatically when you leave the app, and nothing is uploaded. The cost of that design is that there is no recovery: if you forget the pattern, neither you nor Velcrypt can open the vault. Like any lock, it also cannot help if someone watches you draw the pattern or you hand over the phone with the vault already open.