Keeping a surprise private
Planning a gift, proposal or party? Keep photos, notes and receipts out of sight on iPhone and Android until the big day.
You just photographed the ring in the shop window. Or screenshotted the concert tickets. And the person you are surprising is the one most likely to glance over your shoulder tonight. This is privacy at its friendliest, and it mostly comes down to the trail.
Right now
Hide the photo and the screenshot. On iPhone, select them, tap More and choose Hide. On Android, move them into Google Photos Locked Folder or Samsung Secure Folder. If you share a photo library or a family album, check that the picture did not just appear on their phone too.
The places surprises leak
- Lock screen previews. Order confirmations and delivery updates often name the product. Turn off previews for email and shopping apps until the day.
- Memories and widgets. Photo apps like to resurface recent pictures. Hidden photos are left out on iPhone; on Android, items in Locked Folder do not appear in the main grid.
- Search and browsing history. Recently viewed products in a shared shopping account are a classic giveaway.
- The group chat. Give it a dull name and mute it.
- Planning notes. Apple Notes can lock a single note; on Android, keep it in Secure Folder or a notes app with its own lock.
If they know your passcode
Hidden albums open with the phone's own passcode or face. If that is a problem, a separate vault with its own unlock helps. VaultWell, coming soon, can also send a read-only copy to the people helping you plan, with a limit on opens and an expiry date. Anyone with that copy and its share phrase could still save what they see, so share with people you trust.
After the big day
Unhide what you want to keep, delete what you do not (including from Recently Deleted), and turn your notifications back on. Then enjoy it.