Notes lock or photo vault: which protects more?
What Apple's note lock does
Apple lets you lock a note so its contents stay hidden until you unlock it with Face ID, Touch ID or a password. Apple says both lock options keep your information secure with end-to-end encryption for iCloud accounts.
You pick one of two ways to unlock:
- Your iPhone passcode. Easy to remember, and Apple says iCloud Keychain must be on to use it. But anyone who knows your passcode can open the note too, because that's what unlocks it.
- A separate Notes password. Better if someone close to you might know your passcode. Apple warns that it can't help you recover locked notes if you forget this password. A reset only lets you lock new notes, and it doesn't bring back the old ones.
To lock a note, open it, tap the More button, then tap Lock.
What a locked note can't hold
Apple says you can't lock a note that has tags, PDFs, audio, video, or Keynote, Pages or Numbers documents. You also can't lock a note you share with others, or one saved in a third-party account such as Gmail or Yahoo. Apple's page doesn't say whether a locked note's title stays visible, so check with a test note before you put anything sensitive in the first line.
A note is also not a place to put a photo and call it safe. If the picture is still in your camera roll, locking the note doesn't lock that copy.
Side by side
| Locked note in Apple Notes | FirstHour's Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | A few lines of text | Photos, videos, files and plain-text notes |
| Opens with | Your iPhone passcode, or a separate Notes password, with Face ID or Touch ID if you like | Its own 5×5 pattern or 6-digit PIN, separate from your passcode |
| Someone who knows your passcode | Can open it if you chose the passcode option | Can't open it without your pattern or PIN |
| If you forget the code | With a Notes password, Apple can't recover old locked notes | A recovery phrase you wrote on paper |
| If you lose your iPhone | Notes in iCloud sync to your other devices | Gone, unless you saved an encrypted backup file and kept your recovery phrase |
So which protects more?
- Someone watches you unlock your phone: a note locked with your passcode gives little extra. Use a separate password, or the Vault.
- You can't risk losing it: a locked note syncs through iCloud. A vault on one phone doesn't, until you make a backup.
- It's a picture or a document: use a vault, or delete it if you don't need it.
- Someone watches you draw or type the code: neither lock holds up. Shield the screen.
How FirstHour helps
The Vault keeps photos, videos, files and notes behind its own pattern or 6-digit PIN. Each item is sealed with AES-256-GCM on your iPhone. In the Vault, tap +, then Choose from Photos, Choose from Files, Take a photo or video or Write a note. Its notes are plain text, with no formatting, and they save as you type.
It has limits. A note you write there doesn't sync anywhere, and the Vault isn't included in iCloud or computer backups. Without a backup file you saved yourself, losing your iPhone or deleting FirstHour loses what's inside. Someone who watches you draw your pattern can copy it. Here's how the Vault compares with the Hidden album.
Questions
Can I lock a note that has a photo in it?
Apple's list of what stops a note being locked names tags, PDFs, audio, video and some document types. Photos aren't on it. Still, a picture that's also in your camera roll is not locked there.
Does locking a note hide it from Apple?
Apple says locked notes use end-to-end encryption for iCloud accounts. That's about the iCloud copy, not about someone holding your unlocked iPhone, and not about a note you left unlocked.
Sources
- How to lock or unlock notes on your iPhone or iPad, Apple Support