Hidy VaultSomeone wants to borrow your phone
Lending a phone for a call or a map takes seconds. What they can open in those seconds is up to you. A few settings now make the next handover a non-event.
- For one app: Guided Access keeps them inside it until you enter a passcode.
- Lock the apps that matter with Require Face ID (iOS 18 and later).
- Keep the most private files in a vault that locks when you leave it.
What a borrowed phone exposes
An unlocked iPhone opens to everything: Photos, Messages, mail, notes, banking notifications. Most borrowers never look. The problem is the one time someone does, or a notification pops up while they're holding it.
The same handoff rules apply when a child uses your iPhone and opens Photos first.
The same logic applies to screenshots of private chats: once captured, the image lives in Photos like any other.
Three layers
- Guided Access for short handovers. Turn it on in Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access, then triple-click the side button in the app you want to allow. They stay in that app (Apple).
- Lock sensitive apps. Touch and hold Photos, Messages or Files, then Require Face ID. Apple also keeps a locked app's content out of search and notification previews (Apple).
- A vault for what matters most. Hidy Vault locks the moment you leave it, and its pattern isn't your passcode.
Hidy Vault keeps photos, videos and documents in encrypted vaults that open only with a pattern you draw. No account, no Hidy server. Free for 3 vaults.
Checklist
- Guided Access turned on, with its own passcode.
- Photos and Files set to Require Face ID.
- Private photos moved out of the library into a vault.
- Notification previews set to "When Unlocked" in Settings > Notifications.
Frequently asked questions
Does Require Face ID stop someone using my phone?
It stops them opening that specific app without Face ID or your passcode. Everything else stays open.
Is Guided Access easy to undo?
They'd need your Guided Access passcode or Face ID to leave the app.
Do I need to lock Hidy before lending the phone?
Hidy locks as soon as it goes to the background. As long as you've left the app, the vault is locked.
