Free privacy tool

The 5-minute iPhone privacy check-up

Fifteen settings decide most of what your iPhone shares. Check them off in about five minutes. Each one says why it matters and exactly where it lives in Settings. Your progress stays in this browser. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Progress saved only on this device. Nothing is uploaded.

Photos & camera

Lock down the Hidden albumOn current iOS the Hidden album is locked with Face ID by default. That is a gate tied to your device unlock, not a separate encrypted vault. Keep the lock on, and take the album off the Albums list entirely.Where:SettingsAppsPhotosShow Hidden Album — offOn iOS 17 and earlier: Settings › Photos.What the Hidden album does and doesn’t protect →Stop apps reading your whole libraryAny app with “Full Access” can read every photo you have, including the Hidden album’s contents on older iOS. Most apps only need the few photos you actually share with them.Where:SettingsPrivacy & SecurityPhotoseach app → Limited AccessRed flags in apps that ask for everything →Stop geotagging every photoYour camera writes your exact location into each photo’s metadata, and anyone you send the file to can read it. Turn it off, or at least strip it when sharing: tap Options at the top of the share sheet.Where:SettingsPrivacy & SecurityLocation ServicesCamera → NeverSee what a photo reveals about you →Decide whether photos sync at allIf iCloud Photos is on, every photo lives on Apple’s servers, Hidden album included. Apple holds the keys unless you also turn on Advanced Data Protection. Make it a decision, not a default.Where:Settingsyour nameiCloudPhotosSync this iPhonePhotos may sit under “Saved to iCloud” › See All.iCloud Photos and your privacy, explained →

Lock screen & access

Hide message previews on the lock screenAnyone glancing at your locked phone can read incoming messages: names, words, photos. Show previews only after Face ID recognizes you.Where:SettingsNotificationsShow PreviewsWhen UnlockedUse a 6-digit or alphanumeric passcodeA 4-digit code has ten thousand combinations. Six digits has a million, and a real passphrase far more. Your passcode also gates Face ID resets and much else.Where:SettingsFace ID & PasscodeChange PasscodePasscode OptionsHow long would your PIN survive? →Turn on Stolen Device ProtectionIf someone learns your passcode and grabs the phone, this forces Face ID plus a delay before the big changes: Apple ID password, recovery keys, disabling Find My.Where:SettingsFace ID & PasscodeStolen Device ProtectionShorten Auto-LockEvery minute your screen stays awake unattended is a minute anyone can pick it up open. 30 seconds is the private choice.Where:SettingsDisplay & BrightnessAuto-Lock30 SecondsTrim what works while lockedControl Center, Wallet, wired accessories (the “Accessories” toggle) and replies can all be reachable without unlocking. Each one is a small door past your passcode. Close the ones you don’t use.Where:SettingsFace ID & PasscodeAllow Access When Locked

Cloud & backups

Consider Advanced Data ProtectionUnder Standard Data Protection, Apple holds the encryption keys for most iCloud categories, including backups and photos. ADP makes them end-to-end encrypted, so only your devices hold the keys. Two caveats. If you lose your devices and your recovery contact or key, no one can help. And availability varies by region: Apple no longer offers ADP to new users in the UK.Where:Settingsyour nameiCloudAdvanced Data ProtectionZero-knowledge encryption, explained →Know what your backup containsA standard iCloud Backup includes your message history and app data. Under Standard Data Protection, Apple holds the keys to it, so it can also be produced under legal process. Only ADP changes that. Check what is in yours and whether that is a trade you accept.Where:Settingsyour nameiCloudiCloud Backup

System & tracking

Control who can read your clipboardAny app you open can ask to paste whatever you last copied: a password, an address, a photo. Set nosy apps to Deny. Universal Clipboard also shares your copies with your other Apple devices (Settings › General › AirPlay & Continuity).Where:SettingsAppseach appPaste from Other Apps → Ask or DenyThe row appears in an app’s settings after it first tries to read your clipboard. “AirPlay & Continuity” was “AirPlay & Handoff” on iOS 17 and earlier.Refuse cross-app tracking outrightWith this off, apps can’t even ask to track you across other companies’ apps and websites. The prompts stop and the answer is always no.Where:SettingsPrivacy & SecurityTrackingAllow Apps to Request to Track — offClear the phone’s own diary of placesYour iPhone quietly keeps a log of places you visit often, and now the routes between them. It is end-to-end encrypted, but anyone holding your unlocked phone can still read it.Where:SettingsPrivacy & SecurityLocation ServicesSystem ServicesSignificant Locations & RoutesOn iOS 18 and earlier the entry is called “Significant Locations”.Run Safety Check onceOne screen shows everything you’re sharing and with whom, such as location, photos and access, and can revoke it all at once. Worth five minutes even if nothing is wrong. Essential if someone once had your phone.Where:SettingsPrivacy & SecuritySafety CheckPrivacy inside a relationship, done honestly →

Paths verified against Apple’s documentation for iOS 26 (August 2026), with notes where older iOS differs. Apple moves things. If a step doesn’t match, search for the setting’s name inside Settings.

Checklist completion

0/15

This counts the boxes you’ve ticked. It can’t see or verify your actual device settings.

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<a href="https://sealby.app/tools/iphone-privacy-checkup">The 5-minute iPhone privacy check-up: 15 settings that matter</a>

Settings protect the phone. What protects the photos?

Even a perfectly configured iPhone shows everything to whoever unlocks it. Sealby adds the layer iOS doesn’t have: encrypted vaults that open only with their own PIN, with no stored list or count of them.

Download on the App Store

iPhone & iPad · iOS 17+ · Free