Your passcode opens more than your phone. Anyone who knows it can open the Hidden album, read notes you locked with it, reset Face ID, and change your Apple Account password.
Close the doors your passcode opens
- Change your passcode: Settings, Face ID & Passcode, Change Passcode. Pick 6 digits or an alphanumeric code.
- Turn on Stolen Device Protection in the same screen.
- Check Face ID: Settings, Face ID & Passcode. If you see an Alternate Appearance you didn't set up, reset Face ID.
- Check your Apple Account devices: Settings, your name, scroll to the device list. Remove anything you don't own.
See what your passcode still unlocks
| Where your files sit | Opens with your passcode? |
|---|---|
| Photos, Hidden album | Yes |
| Notes locked with your iPhone passcode | Yes |
| Notes locked with a separate password | No |
| Apps locked with Require Face ID | Yes, the passcode works as fallback |
| Vaulteo | No, only your pattern opens a vault |
Move what matters behind a pattern
Vaulteo's vaults don't use your passcode at all. Each one opens only with the pattern you drew, and the files inside stay sealed with a key made from that pattern.
- Create a vault with a pattern nobody has seen you draw.
- Run the camera-roll check to find IDs, cards and screenshots.
- Move them in, then empty Recently Deleted.
- Set up a decoy vault in case someone pushes you to open the app.
Stay safe first
If the person who knows your passcode frightens you, files come second. In the US, the National Domestic Violence Hotline answers at 1-800-799-7233, and Apple's Safety Check (Settings, Privacy & Security) shows you who your iPhone shares with.