If you’re concerned about privacy on your iPhone, there are a few quick settings adjustments you should consider making. These five iOS changes can help you protect personal data, hide sensitive content, and prevent snooping—all without compromising convenience.
Conceal Your Lock Screen Information
Your Lock Screen may be revealing more information than you realize. Even when your iPhone is locked, certain features can be accessed by anyone who picks it up.
To limit what’s visible:
- Go to: Settings > Face ID & Passcode
- Scroll down to Allow Access When Locked
- Disable access to any of the following that you don’t need:
- Today View and Search
- Notification Centre
- Control Centre
- Lock Screen Widgets
- Live Activities
- Siri
- Reply with Message
- Home Control
- Wallet
- Return Missed Calls
- Accessories
While keeping all of these enabled makes your iPhone more convenient, it also makes it easier for snoopers to access information without unlocking your device. Disabling unnecessary options improves privacy.
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Hide Lock Screen Notifications
By default, notification previews might appear even when your iPhone is locked, revealing sensitive messages and alerts.
To hide previews:
- Go to: Settings > Notifications > Show Previews
- Select: When Unlocked or Never
You can also customize notification settings for individual apps by scrolling down in the Notifications menu. This allows you to keep notifications visible for certain apps (such as news updates) while hiding them for others (like messaging apps).
If you later find hidden notifications inconvenient, you can always revert to your previous settings.
Lock and Hide Apps
Even if someone gains access to your unlocked iPhone, you can still lock and hide your most sensitive apps.
With iOS 18, Apple introduced built-in app locking:
- Press and hold an app on the Home Screen
- Select Require Face ID > Require Face ID
This means even if your phone is unlocked, the app won’t open without Face ID authentication.
To completely hide an app:
- Press and hold the app
- Choose Require Face ID > Hide and Require Face ID
The app will disappear from your Home Screen and move to a Hidden folder in the App Library.
- To access it, scroll to the last page of your Home Screen, go to App Library, and scroll down to the Hidden folder.
- You’ll need to authenticate with Face ID to open it.
Apps can be unhidden and unlocked anytime if you decide to restore access.
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Hide Private Photos
Certain photos—whether they’re personal snapshots, financial documents, or confidential images—shouldn’t be easily accessible. iOS lets you hide photos inside a secure Hidden folder.
To hide a photo:
- Open the Photos app
- Press and hold an image, then select Hide
To find hidden photos:
- Go to the Photos app > Utilities > Hidden folder
- Authenticate with Face ID to access the images
For even more privacy, you can hide the Hidden folder itself:
- Go to: Settings > Photos
- Disable: Show Hidden Album
This makes the Hidden folder completely invisible in the Photos app.
Use Safety Check to Detect Unauthorized Access
Apple’s Safety Check is a powerful privacy tool that helps you see what information you’re sharing with others and revoke access if necessary.
To check for unauthorized access:
- Go to: Settings > Privacy & Security > Safety Check
- Review who has access to your location, Apple ID, photos, and more
- If you detect anything suspicious, revoke permissions
For emergency privacy concerns, use the Emergency Reset option to instantly cut off all access from other people and apps.
Additionally, there’s a Quick Exit button that lets you immediately close the Settings app while saving changes, preventing anyone from noticing what you’ve adjusted.
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These five quick iOS adjustments can greatly improve your privacy and security without affecting your daily usage. Whether you’re preventing snooping, hiding sensitive content, or restricting unauthorized access, these simple tweaks ensure your personal data stays protected.
Take a few minutes to go through these settings—you might be surprised at how much safer your iPhone feels afterward!