You can save sensitive photos and videos to a folder protected by your device screen lock in the Google Photos app. Items in Locked Folder won’t appear in the Photos grid, memories, search or albums and won’t be available to other apps on your device that have access to your photos and videos.
Locked Folder is protected by Google Photos’ standard encryption practices. Learn how Google Photos keeps your data private & secure.
Set up Locked Folder
The first time you try to move photos and videos to Locked Folder, you'll be prompted to set it up.Important:
- Locked Folder is available on iOS versions 15 and later.
- People who have access to the Face ID®, Touch ID®, or device passcode can unlock Locked Folder.
- You can also choose to turn on backup for Locked Folder at this time.
- If you don’t have a Face ID®, Touch ID®, or passcode set up for your device, you’ll need to set one up to use Locked Folder. Learn how to set or change a passcode on your iOS device.
- Your Locked Folder password is the same as your Face ID®, Touch ID®, or device passcode.
- You can’t use a different Locked Folder password.
- Open the Google Photos app
.
- At the bottom, tap Collections.
- At the bottom, tap Locked.
- Select Set up Locked Folder.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to unlock your device. If your folder is empty, you’ll find "Nothing here yet."
.Back up your Locked Folder
You can turn on automatic backup for your Locked Folder.
When you turn on backup for Locked Folder, you can access your Locked Folder from other devices when you're signed in with your Google Account.
Important:
- To automatically back up your Locked Folder, you must first turn on backup in Google Photos for the rest of your photos & videos. Turn on backup.
- You can keep backup for Locked Folder off but still manually back up items in Locked Folder.
- Items in Locked Folder that you don't back up will only be stored on that device. You can’t see these items from other devices you're signed into with Locked Folder.
- You’ll lose Locked Folder items you haven't backed up if:
- You uninstall the Google Photos app
- Your device is damaged or lost
Turn backup on & off for Locked Folder
- Open the Google Photos app
- Sign in to your Google Account.
- At the top, tap your Profile picture or Initial.
- Tap the Google Photos settings
Backup
- Open Locked Folder.
- Use your Face ID®, Touch ID®, or device passcode when prompted.
- Turn Back up Locked Folder on or off.
Backup Tip: Learn more about the benefits of backup.
Manually back up your Locked Folder
You can choose to manually back up individual photos & videos in your Locked Folder.
- Open the Google Photos app
- Sign in to your Google Account.
- At the bottom, tap Collections.
- At the bottom, tap Locked.
- Use your Face ID®, Touch ID®, or device passcode when prompted.
- Select with a long press the photos or videos you want to back up.
- At the top, tap Backup
.
Move photos or videos to Locked Folder
Important:
- Google Photos backups of these items will be deleted if backup for Locked Folder is not turned on.
- When you move photos and videos to Locked Folder, related items aren’t moved. This includes copies, edited versions, and shared photos and videos saved by others.
- From the Photos app, tap Photos.
- Select the photos and videos you want in Locked Folder.
- At the top, tap More
- Tap Move.
Learn more about Locked Folder
The difference between Locked Folder & ArchiveLocked Folder keeps items hidden and protected by your device screen lock or Google Account password. Archived items can still be accessible.
Locked Folder items won't show up when you search in Google Photos, while Archived items will show up.
You can:
- Move them out of Locked Folder
- Permanently delete them
- Find them within Locked Folder after unlocking it
What you can’t do with items in Locked Folder
To prevent accidental exposure of your sensitive photos and videos, you can’t do the following with your Locked Folder content:
- Add items to an album or photo book
- Edit items or revert changes made before an item was moved to Locked Folder
- Share items in Google Photos or with other apps like Instagram or Facebook
- Move items to Trash
- View photos or videos that your device can't display in original format or resolution
Important:
- If backup is off, Locked Folder items that are saved locally to your device aren't transferred in USB to USB device transfers or Cloud data transfers.
- If backup is off, Locked Folder items are deleted if you:
- Factory reset your device
- Clear app data
- Delete the Photos app
- To keep your Locked Folder items, turn on Locked Folder backup or individually back up items in your Locked Folder.
To find items you’ve moved to Locked Folder:
- On your computer: Click Locked Folder.
- On your mobile device:
- At the bottom, tap Collections.
- At the bottom, tap Locked.
Where you can't access items in Locked Folder
To keep your sensitive photos and videos private, items in Locked Folder:
- Won’t appear in search results, albums, shared items or any new memories.
- Are removed from existing memories and draft print orders.
- Aren’t available to share through third party apps.
Important: Your sensitive photos and videos won’t be shown on Google smart displays like Nest Hub or through Chromecast, although it may take up to an hour for items to disappear.