The Photos app on iOS 16 boasts a bunch of useful features, including the ability to edit multiple photos quickly, a new Shared iCloud Photo Library, merge and remove photos, and an option to lock the hidden photos album and recently deleted albums. On iOS 16, you can easily lock the most private photos on your iPhone.
Apple takes too much time to bring this much-needed utility tool to the iPhone, but better late than never. The new Photos app feature on iOS 16 lets you lock the hidden albums with the help of Face ID, Touch ID, or Passcode.
Up until now, you can hide any photo from the main photos library, which can be accessed easily from Hidden Albums under utilities. With the introduction of a new feature, there’s no need to install any third-party photo vault app on your iPhone, you can easily activate it under Photos settings.
Although the new feature is enabled by default, you will see a little lock icon next to the arrow button on the hidden albums tab in the utility section, if not, then you can follow this guide to activate the new lock on hidden albums and recently deleted albums on your iPhone.
Let’s dive right into the steps.
How to Lock Hidden Albums and Recently Deleted Albums on iOS 16
Whether you want to lock the hidden albums, recently deleted albums, or merge duplicate photos, make sure that your iPhone is running on the latest iOS 16 software. If your iPhone is already running on the latest iOS 16, then follow these steps to lock the private or sensitive photos on your iPhone.
- Open the Settings on your iPhone running iOS 16.
- Scroll down, till you see the Photos app settings, then tap on Photos.
- Now turn the toggle on for Use Face ID or Use Touch ID (iPhones with Touch ID has the Use Touch ID option).
- Make sure that the Show Hidden Albums option is enabled.
- Once enabled, open the Photos app.
- Select the Albums tab from the bottom bar.
- On the album screen, swipe down to the bottom.
- Under Utilities section, you’ll see the Hidden and Recently Deleted albums with a lock icon next to the arrow button.
- Tap on it, now it will authenticate using Face ID or Touch ID.
- That’s it.
With the new feature activated, if someone near you finds your unlocked iPhone, then they won’t be able to access the recently deleted or hidden albums.
If you want to give access to the hidden albums to a family member, then you can add an alternate face to Face ID. To add an alternate Face ID head over to the Settings, then Face ID & Passcode, enter the passcode, then select “Set Up an Alternative Appearance option”, now add a new face for Face ID authentication, which you can later use to unlock your iPhone and access the hidden photos as well.
So, this is the easiest way by which you can lock hidden photos on your iPhone.
If you still have a query on how to lock hidden photos on iPhone running iOS 16, then leave a comment in the comment box. Also, share this article with your friends.
iOS 16 Articles:
- How to batch edit photos on iPhone [iOS 16]
- How to Remove the Home Screen Search Button in iOS 16
- How to Show Battery Percentage on iPhone [iOS 16]
- How to Change Notifications Layout on Lock Screen [iOS 16]
- iOS 16: What Privacy features are coming to iPhone?
- How to use Safety Check on iPhone [iOS 16]
- How to Merge and Delete Duplicate Photos on iPhone [iOS 16]