Guides
Plain answers first, details after. Each guide is checked against how phones actually behave, on both iPhone and Android.
Hiding photos and files
- Android private space explained: what it hides, and what it doesn'tPrivate space is a locked area for apps on Android 15 and later.
- How long deleted photos stay on Android, and how to remove them for goodOn most Android phones a deleted photo goes to the gallery app's trash first.
- How to hide photos on Android, from built-in options to vault appsMost Android phones can hide photos with a locked folder in the gallery app, and phones on Android 15 and later can add private space, a separate area for apps.
- How to hide photos on iPhone, and what that really protectsTouch and hold a photo in the Photos app and tap Hide.
- How to lock and hide apps on iPhone, and what it doesn't hideTouch and hold an app, tap the option to require face unlock, fingerprint or passcode, and choose either to lock it or to lock and hide it.
- How to stop private photos appearing in memories on iPhoneIn the Photos app, tap Collections, then your account in the top-right corner, and turn off Show Featured Content to stop memories and featured photos altogether.
- How to stop private photos showing up in memories on AndroidIn your gallery app's settings, look for Memories.
- Where deleted photos go on iPhone, and how to remove them for goodA photo you delete on iPhone moves to the deleted collection under Utilities in the Photos app and stays there for 30 days, then is removed from the phone and from your photo library in iCloud.
Choosing a vault app
- Are photo vault apps safe?It depends on the app.
- Calculator vault apps: what the disguise does and doesn't doA calculator vault app looks like an ordinary calculator and opens a vault when you enter a secret code.
- Does deleting a vault app delete the photos inside it?Usually yes.
- How do photo vault apps work?A photo vault app copies your photos into its own private storage, then puts a lock in front of them.
- Vault apps and SD cards: why storing private photos on the card is riskyA memory card can be removed and read in any card reader, so files on it are only as private as their encryption.
Backup, moving and export
- How to get your photos out of a vault appLook in the vault app's settings for export.
- How to move photos into a vault app without losing anyImport a few test photos first, open them inside the vault, and export one to prove it works.
- How to move your photo vault to a new phoneDon't rely on the phone's own transfer to carry your vault across, because apps decide whether their data is included.
- How to protect the account that holds your photo backupUse a strong password used nowhere else, turn on two-step verification or switch to a passkey, and make sure the recovery email and phone number are yours.
- How to stop your Android phone backing up private photos to the cloudIn your photo backup app's settings, open the backup section and the list of device folders, and switch off backup for folders that hold private photos, such as Screenshots or a chat app's folder.
- Is cloud photo backup encrypted, and who holds the key?Yes, but the word covers three different things.
- Switching from Android to iPhone: what happens to hidden and private photosThe iPhone's transfer from Android copies photos and albums stored on the phone, but photos in a gallery's locked folder, in private space or inside vault apps aren't in shared storage, so they don't come with them.
- Switching from iPhone to Android without losing or exposing private photosAndroid's setup tool copies photos stored on the iPhone, by cable or wirelessly, but photos that live only in your cloud photo library need a separate transfer, and vault apps keep their files to themselves.
Locks, PINs and recovery
- I forgot my vault PIN. Can I get my photos back?It depends on how the app was built.
- Locking your Android phone with fingerprint or face unlock: how safe is it?Fingerprint and face unlock are a convenience layer on top of your screen lock.
- Passkeys explained: what they are and why they're saferA passkey is a sign-in key that your phone creates for one website or app and keeps in its password manager.
- PIN vs pattern vs passphrase vs face or fingerprint: which should you use?A long passphrase is the hardest to guess, a 6-digit PIN is a good everyday balance, and a pattern is the weakest because so few shapes are common.
- SIM PIN explained: what it protects and how to set oneA SIM PIN locks your SIM card or eSIM, so after a restart, or in another phone, it can't make calls, use data or receive texts until someone enters the code.
- What is a recovery phrase, and where should you keep it?A recovery phrase is a short list of ordinary words that can rebuild the key to your encrypted data.
Encryption explained
- Encryption explained: how your photos get scrambled, and what keeps them safeEncryption scrambles data with a secret key so that only someone with the key can read it.
- End-to-end vs zero-knowledge encryption: what each term promisesEnd-to-end encryption means data is encrypted on your device and only decrypted on the receiving one, so services in the middle can't read it.
- Why restarting your phone protects your dataYour phone's storage is encrypted, but after the first unlock since it was turned on, the key to most of your data stays in memory, even when the screen is locked.
Sharing and photo metadata
- How to show photos from your phone on a TV without showing everythingStream photos from the Photos or gallery app instead of mirroring your whole screen, because mirroring shows everything, including notifications and the next photo you swipe to.
- How to stop chat apps saving received photos to your galleryMost chat apps have a setting, usually called media visibility, save to gallery or save to Photos, that copies received photos into your phone's gallery.
- How to stop photos from recording where you took them, and remove it before sharingTurn off the camera's location access to stop new photos from recording where they were taken.
- Nearby sharing: the privacy settings to check on iPhone and AndroidOn both iPhone and Android, set nearby sharing to receive from contacts only, and switch to everyone only for the few minutes you need it.
- Who can see your shared photo albums, and how to checkEveryone you invited can see a shared album, and if the album has a link, anyone who gets the link can too.
Phone privacy settings
- Android Advanced Protection: what it turns on, and who it's forAdvanced Protection is a single switch in Android's security settings that turns on a bundle of protections and locks them on: it blocks apps from outside the app store, restarts the phone after 72 hours locked, guards the USB port while the screen is locked and blocks 2G networks, among others.
- Android theft protection explained: what it locks, and what it doesn't coverAndroid's theft protection adds automatic screen locks: when the phone is snatched from your hand, when it goes offline, and after repeated failed unlock attempts, plus a remote lock you trigger with your phone number.
- How Android removes permissions from apps you don't useIf you haven't used an app for a long time, Android revokes its permissions, deletes its temporary files and stops it running in the background or sending notifications.
- How to hide message previews on your lock screenOn iPhone, go to Settings, then Notifications, then Show Previews, and choose When Unlocked or Never.
- iPhone Stolen Device Protection: what it does and when it helpsStolen Device Protection, on iOS 17.3 and later, makes some actions need face or fingerprint unlock with no passcode fallback when your iPhone is away from familiar places.
- Private Wi-Fi addresses: what they hide and when to turn them offEvery phone has a hardware network address, and a phone that always uses the same one can be recognized on every Wi-Fi network it joins.
- The Android photo picker and limited photo access: what an app can actually seeWhen an app opens Android's photo picker, it receives only the photos you tap, and it needs no photo permission at all.
- Use the Android privacy dashboard to check photo and camera access in two minutesOpen Settings, then Security and privacy (or Privacy), then Privacy dashboard.
- Where Android saves your screenshots, and who else can see themAndroid saves screenshots as ordinary images in a Screenshots folder, which your gallery app shows under its device folders.
- Which apps can see your photos? How to review access on iPhone and AndroidBoth iPhone and Android let an app see all your photos, only the ones you pick, or none.
Repairs, selling and handing over
- Protect your photos before you hand your phone in for repairBack up everything first, because some repairs erase the phone.
- Selling or trading in your phone? Do these things firstBack up what you want to keep, sign out of your accounts, remove the phone from them, then factory reset it and check it restarts at the welcome screen.
- What a factory reset on Android erases, and what it leaves in the cloudA factory reset erases everything stored on the phone: apps and their data, photos, locked folders, private space and vault apps.
- What erasing an iPhone removes, and what it leaves behindErase All Content and Settings, under Settings, General, Transfer or Reset iPhone, removes your content, accounts and settings from the phone and returns it to factory state.
Sensitive documents
Snooping and stalkerware
- How to check an Android phone for stalkerware, safelyLook for apps you don't recognize in the full app list, and check which apps have device admin rights, accessibility access, notification access and permission to install other apps.
- How to check which devices are signed in to your accountOn Android, open your account settings, go to Security & sign-in, then Manage all devices.
- How to tell if someone has been going through your phoneMost snooping leaves small clues: a phone unlocked when you left it locked, apps or photos you didn't open, unfamiliar apps or settings, or someone who knows things they shouldn't.
- iPhone Safety Check: review who can see your informationSafety Check is in Settings, then Privacy & Security, on iPhones with iOS 16 or later.