# Password-protect a single photo on iPhone

> The Photos app has no password for one photo. Use the Hidden album or an encrypted vault app, then delete the original so only the locked copy is left.

Source: https://vault9app.com/guides/password-protect-individual-photos-iphone/
Updated: 2026-11-12

Photos has no password for a single photo. You have 2 ways to put a lock on the pictures you choose. The Hidden album uses your phone lock. A vault app uses a lock of its own.

## Option 1: the Hidden album

1. Open the photo, tap the more button, then tap **Hide**.
2. To see it again, tap **Collections**, then **Hidden** under Utilities. Tap **View Album** and unlock it.

Apple says Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode unlocks the Hidden album ([Apple: Delete or hide photos and videos](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/delete-or-hide-photos-and-videos-iphb4defbde9/ios)). Anyone who knows your passcode can open it. And it is one lock for all hidden photos, so you cannot give one photo a different lock. With iCloud Photos on, a hidden photo is hidden on all your devices. [How to hide photos](https://vault9app.com/guides/hide-photos-iphone/) has the full steps.

## Option 2: a vault app

Vault9 encrypts each item on your iPhone, and each file has its own key. The vault opens with your pattern or passphrase and your Secret Key, or Face ID if you turn it on. Your phone passcode never opens it.

Is the one photo you care about the one your partner or your child might find? Import it into Vault9, and your pattern or passphrase opens it, not your iPhone passcode. [Vault9 on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/id6830759639?pt=129716075&ct=password-protect-individual-photos-md)

Import from the Photos app. If the photo is in the Hidden album, unhide it first, because the picker does not show that album. A vault that is open on an unlocked phone is not protected, so lock the app when you hand the phone over.

## Delete the original

Importing leaves the original in your library. Open the copy in the vault first, and check that it works. Then delete the original in Photos.

A deleted photo stays in Recently Deleted for 30 days, says Apple. To remove it now, tap **Collections**, tap **Recently Deleted**, tap **View Album** and unlock it. Select the photo, tap **More**, then tap **Delete**. With iCloud Photos on, the delete reaches your other devices too.

## Sources

- [Apple Support: Hide photos with the Hidden album](https://support.apple.com/en-us/104987) (checked 2026-11-06)
- [Apple Support: Delete photos on your iPhone or iPad](https://support.apple.com/en-us/104967) (checked 2026-11-06)
- [Apple Support: Delete or hide photos and videos on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/delete-or-hide-photos-and-videos-iphb4defbde9/ios) (checked 2026-11-06)