The private photo vault that encrypts everything on your iPhone, opens each vault with its own pattern and backs up to iCloud still encrypted. Nobody else can open it. Not even us.
Point your iPhone camera at the code to install. No account.
The problem
Private photos sit in three places at once, and the built-in tools only cover one of them.
Is all it takes to open the iPhone Hidden album. Partners, kids and repair shops often know it.
How long iOS keeps deleted photos in Recently Deleted. Moving a photo into most vaults leaves the original right there.
With iCloud Photos on, private photos sync to every iPhone, iPad and Mac on your Apple Account.
Its own unlock, a clean-up that leaves 0 copies, and backups that are encrypted before they leave your iPhone. Hidden album vs VaultBolt →
Features
Find, encrypt, clean up, back up. And when someone pushes you to open it, show them something harmless.
An on-device scan sorts thousands of photos in minutes and groups intimate photos, IDs, cards and screenshots of passwords. Nothing leaves your iPhone. Try it in airplane mode.
AES-256-GCM on the device for every file and the index. Nobody else can open it: not Apple, not a thief, not even VaultBolt.
Personal, work, travel: every vault opens with its own pattern, PIN or passphrase, and no screen reveals how many exist.
Uploads to your own private iCloud already encrypted, on every plan. Restore anywhere with your 12-word phrase.
A guided flow deletes the originals, empties Recently Deleted and checks iCloud Photos, then confirms: 0 copies left.
A decoy code opens harmless content. A duress code also removes the real vault's keys from the device, silently.
Draw a pattern, type a PIN or passphrase, or use Face ID and Touch ID, with a strength hint as you set it up.
Photos, videos and multi-page document scans encrypted as you capture them. No original, no clean-up.
Wrong attempts trigger a silent front-camera photo and a time-stamped log, stored encrypted in your vault.
How it works
VaultBolt scans your library on the device and groups what looks private. You review every result.
Selected items are sealed with AES-256-GCM as they enter the vault. Names and folders are encrypted too.
Delete the originals, empty Recently Deleted, check iCloud Photos. Then see it: 0 copies left.
How VaultBolt compares
Side by side with Vaultaire, Keepsafe, Private Photo Vault and Apple's Hidden album, based on each app's own App Store listing.
| Feature | VaultBoltiPhone & iPad | Vaultaire★ 4.7 · 55 ratings | Keepsafe★ 4.8 · 385,432 ratings | Private Photo Vault★ 4.8 · 1,018,766 ratings | Apple Hidden albumBuilt into iOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File encryption describedWhat the listing says about how files are protected | ✓Yes: AES-256-GCM, on device | ✓Yes: AES-256-GCM | ~Partly: "Military-grade", no detail | ~Partly: Cloud Vault backup encrypted | ~Partly: iOS data protection; no separate vault key |
| Works without an accountNo email or sign-up to use the vault | ✓Yes: No account, ever | ✓Yes: No account | ~Partly: Sync across installs | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✓Yes: Built in |
| No adsOn the free tier | ✓Yes: Never | ✓Yes: No ads | ✕No: Basic is ad supported | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✓Yes: Built in |
| Finds private photos for youOn-device scan of your camera roll | ✓Yes: On-device, offline | ✕No: Manual import | ✕No: Manual import | ✕No: Manual import | ✕No: You pick photos |
| Removes the originalsDeletes camera-roll copies and guides Recently Deleted | ✓Yes: Zero-copies clean-up | ~Partly: Original clean-up after import | ?Not listed: Not listed | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✕No: Items stay in Photos |
| Decoy vault or fake PINA second code that opens harmless content | ✓Yes: Pro | ✓Yes: Separate patterns | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✓Yes: Decoy password | ✕No: No |
| Duress or emergency-erase codeA code that removes access under pressure | ✓Yes: Pro | ✓Yes: Pro | ?Not listed: Not listed | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✕No: No |
| Intruder photoSnaps whoever enters a wrong code | ✓Yes: Pro | ?Not listed: Not listed | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✓Yes: Break-in report, photo + GPS | ✕No: No |
| Encrypted cloud backupWhere backups go and whether they are encrypted first | ✓Yes: Encrypted iCloud, all plans | ✓Yes: Encrypted iCloud | ✓Yes: Private Cloud (Keepsafe) | ✓Yes: Cloud Vault, own password | ~Partly: iCloud Photos settings apply |
| Recovery phraseA way back in that does not depend on the developer | ✓Yes: 12-word phrase | ✓Yes: Nine-word phrase | ?Not listed: Not listed | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✕No: Uses device passcode |
| Face ID / Touch ID | ✓Yes: Optional | ✕No: Pattern only, by design | ✓Yes: Touch ID | ?Not listed: Not listed | ✓Yes: Face ID / passcode |
| Pattern unlock | ✓Yes: Plus PIN and passphrase | ✓Yes: 5×5 pattern | ?Not listed: PIN pad | ✓Yes: Pattern/dot lock | ✕No: No |
| iPhone and iPad | ✓Yes: Sync on Pro | ✓Yes: Sync on Pro | ✓Yes: Phone and tablet | ✓Yes: iPhone and iPad | ✓Yes: Syncs with iCloud Photos |
| One-time purchase optionPay once instead of subscribing | ✓Yes: $37.99 once | ✓Yes: $39.99 | ?Not listed: Subscription | ?Not listed: Subscription | ✓Yes: Free |
| Controlled sharingExpiry, open limits or view-once | ◷On the roadmap: View-once, expiry | ✓Yes: Shared vaults | ✓Yes: Safe Send, time-limited | ?Not listed: Email and text | ✕No: No |
Competitor details from each app's US App Store listing, checked 2026-11-01. "Not listed" means the listing does not mention it, not that the feature is missing. VaultBolt items marked ◷ are on the roadmap.
Security model
We would rather tell you exactly what VaultBolt protects, and where the limits are, than call it "military-grade".
Pricing
No weekly plans. No ads on any plan. US prices; your App Store shows local pricing.
No account. No ads. No card.
Everything, unlimited.
Pro for up to six people. Lifetime $97.99.
Real life
Handing your phone to a friend, a partner who knows your passcode, a border crossing, a repair shop. Start with the situation you are in.
Browse all scenarios →VaultBolt is a private photo, video and file vault for iPhone and iPad. It finds private photos on your device, encrypts them with AES-256-GCM as they enter the vault, and helps you delete every leftover copy. There is no account and no ads.
Yes. The free plan includes up to 3 vaults, 100 photos and 10 videos, the private photo scan, zero-copies clean-up, encrypted iCloud backup and a recovery phrase. Pro unlocks unlimited items, decoy and duress vaults, intruder photos and iPad sync.
No. Files are encrypted on your iPhone with keys derived from your unlock and the Secure Enclave. There is no VaultBolt account and no copy of your keys on any server, so we cannot open your vault.
The Hidden album moves photos out of the main grid but keeps them in Photos, where anyone who knows your passcode can open them. VaultBolt stores items in a separate encrypted vault with its own unlock, decoy options and a clean-up that leaves no copies in Photos.
Use your 12-word recovery phrase to set a new unlock. Keep the phrase somewhere safe and away from your phone: without it, nobody, including VaultBolt, can recover the vault.
On Pro, a decoy code opens a vault of harmless photos. A duress code also removes your real vault's keys from the phone, silently, while your encrypted backup stays for later.
Yes, on every plan. Your vault is encrypted on the device and backed up to your own private iCloud. Restore on a new iPhone with your recovery phrase.
Yes. VaultBolt is built for iPhone and iPad, and Pro keeps the same vault in sync across both through your iCloud, encrypted end to end.
VaultBolt is for iPhone and iPad on the App Store. You can also try the interactive demo vault in your browser first.
Learn
A practical checklist of iPhone privacy settings that protect your photos: passcode, Stolen Device Protection, Hidden album, location, app access and iCloud.
What zero-knowledge encryption means, how to tell if a photo vault really is zero-knowledge, and what the company can and can't see.
When a partner knows your passcode, the Hidden album isn't private. How to keep some photos to yourself without changing your relationship to your phone.
VaultBolt
Get VaultBolt for iPhone and iPad, or see exactly how it works in the interactive demo vault.
Feature 1 of 5 · Encrypted on your iPhone
Every photo, video and file is encrypted on your iPhone the moment it enters your vault, sealed with AES-256-GCM under a random 256-bit key of its own. Your pattern unlocks those keys, but it is stretched with Argon2id and bound to a secret inside your iPhone's Secure Enclave, so nobody can copy your files and guess it on a fast computer. With 2²⁵⁶ possible keys, guessing one would take longer than the age of the universe. Not Apple, not a thief, not even VaultBolt can open it.
Feature 2 of 5 · Each vault, its own pattern
Keep personal memories, work documents and travel papers in separate vaults. Each vault opens with its own pattern, PIN or passphrase, and has its own recovery phrase. There is no list of vaults: the pattern you draw decides which vault opens, so nobody can tell how many you have.
Feature 3 of 5 · Encrypted iCloud backup
Your vault uploads to your own private iCloud, but only after everything is encrypted on your iPhone, so Apple and VaultBolt only ever store ciphertext. Lost or switched phones? Enter your 12-word recovery phrase and everything comes back, on iPhone or iPad. Included on every plan, including Free.
Feature 4 of 5 · Finds them. 0 copies left.
VaultBolt scans your library on your iPhone and finds intimate photos, IDs, bank cards and screenshots of passwords, so you don't have to scroll through thousands. After they are encrypted, it deletes the originals, walks you through Recently Deleted and checks iCloud Photos, then confirms what matters: 0 copies left.
Feature 5 of 5 · Decoy and duress code
If someone forces you to open VaultBolt, draw your duress pattern. A harmless decoy vault opens exactly like a normal unlock, while your real vault's keys are quietly removed from the phone. Your encrypted iCloud backup stays, so you can restore everything later with your recovery phrase.
That is VaultBolt: encrypted on your iPhone, one pattern per vault, backed up as ciphertext, no copies left and safe under pressure.
