---
title: Lock the Photos app with Face ID, or use a vault?
canonical: https://mavaul.com/guides/lock-apps-iphone-vs-photo-vault/
description: Since iOS 18 you can require Face ID to open Photos. It locks the whole app and keeps photos in iCloud. A vault locks just the private ones and keeps them off iCloud.
format: text/markdown
generator: scripts/generate-llms.js
---
# Lock the Photos app, or use a vault?

_By [Diogo Ferreira](/about/), founder & engineer_

Since iOS 18 you can make Photos require Face ID. That locks your whole library, every time, and the photos are still in Photos and iCloud. A vault locks only the photos you choose, with its own passcode, and keeps them out of Photos and iCloud.

## Locking an app
1. Touch and hold the app icon.
2. Choose Require Face ID. Apps you downloaded can also be hidden, into a Hidden folder at the bottom of the App Library. Built-in apps like Photos can be locked but not hidden.

The fallback is your phone passcode, so anyone who knows it can still open the app. A locked app's content stays out of notification previews, search and Siri suggestions, and the lock doesn't sync to your other devices.

## Side by side
- What's locked: a locked app locks everything in it. A vault locks only what you put in it.
- Passcode: a locked app uses your phone's. Mavaul has its own.
- iCloud: Photos keeps syncing. Mavaul keeps photos on the phone, encrypted.
- Everyday use: locking Photos means Face ID for every holiday snap. A vault leaves Photos as it was.

## Use both
Lock Mavaul with its own passcode and Face ID, and you can still require Face ID on the app icon too. Or disguise it as a calculator so the home screen doesn't say vault.

## Questions
### Can I lock the Photos app on iPhone?
Yes, on iOS 18 and later. Touch and hold the icon, then Require Face ID.

### Does locking Photos stop iCloud syncing?
No. It only locks the app on that phone.

### Can I hide a vault app?
Yes. Hide it in the App Library, or give Mavaul a calculator icon.

## Sources
- [Apple Support: Lock or hide an app on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/lock-or-hide-an-app-iph00f208d05/ios)
- [Apple Support: Hide photos with the Hidden album](https://support.apple.com/en-us/104987)

## Read next
- [How to hide photos on iPhone](/guides/how-to-hide-photos-iphone/)
- [Calculator vault apps, explained](/guides/calculator-vault-apps/)
- [Face ID & passcode](/features/face-id-passcode/)

## Try Mavaul
[Download Mavaul on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/pt/app/mavaul-photo-video-vault/id6759567727?l=en-GB)