Comparison
Better than “Hidden”. Actually sealed.
Apple’s Hidden album and locked notes are fine for casual tidiness. But both advertise their own existence, and both open with the same passcode that unlocks the phone — which is exactly the passcode the people around you may know.
Is the iPhone Hidden album actually secure?
Partly. Since iOS 16 the Hidden album locks behind Face ID or the device passcode — but its existence is visible to everyone, anyone who knows your passcode can open it, and unhiding is one setting away. A dedicated encrypted vault like Sealby adds separate PINs, real AES-256 encryption per file, and vaults that can’t be shown to exist.
Where Apple built-ins shines
- Already on every iPhone — zero setup, zero cost
- Locks behind Face ID / passcode by default since iOS 16
- Fine for keeping casual photos out of the main grid
Where it falls short
- The lock is your device credential — anyone who knows your passcode is in
- The Hidden album and locked notes visibly exist, so there is something to demand
- Unhiding is a Settings toggle; no separate encryption, no deniability, no duress option
- Photos and notes live in different apps with no shared vault, search, or independent recovery
The honest verdict
Use the Hidden album for photos that are merely untidy. Use Sealby for anything you’d mind a partner, colleague, or border agent seeing: it separates the secret from your phone passcode, encrypts each file, and keeps whole vaults unprovable. The built-ins hide; Sealby seals.
Common questions
Doesn’t the Hidden album lock with Face ID now?
Yes, since iOS 16 — but the lock is your device credential. Anyone who knows your passcode (family, partners, anyone you unlock for) passes it, the album visibly exists in Photos, and unhiding is a Settings toggle. Sealby uses separate PINs and hides that a vault exists at all.
What about locked notes in Apple Notes?
Locked notes encrypt the note body, but the notes list, titles, and the fact you lock notes stay visible, and the default unlock is the device passcode. Sealby seals entire vaults of notes and files behind their own PINs, with per-vault recovery phrases.
Do hidden photos stay on iCloud?
With iCloud Photos, hidden photos sync like any others and are readable to Apple unless you enable Advanced Data Protection. Sealby encrypts before anything is stored — with or without backup, iCloud only ever holds an unreadable blob.
Related: How hidden vaults work · Private photos · Best encrypted vault apps
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