Seakret
Hidden means out of sight
A hidden album, a locked folder or a gallery “hide” option keeps photos out of the places people usually look. It stops a casual glance. It does not always stop someone who is determined or who has the right tools, because the photos are often still stored as normal files.
Encrypted means unreadable
An encrypted vault scrambles the contents of every file with a key. Without the key, what is stored looks like random noise. Even someone who copies the files off your phone cannot open them.
In Seakret, photos, videos and files are encrypted with AES-256-GCM before they are stored. File names, albums, notes and thumbnails are encrypted too. The full explanation is on our security page.
Side by side
| Hidden album | Encrypted vault | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Keeps photos out of the main view | Scrambles the files so they cannot be read |
| Who it stops | Casual browsing | Casual browsing and anyone without your key |
| Where the key is | Often your phone lock or an account | Your pattern or passphrase |
| If your phone lock is known | Often open | Still locked by its own pattern or passphrase |
How to tell what an app really does
You do not need technical knowledge to tell a hidden album from an encrypted vault. Ask three questions of any app, or of your phone’s own feature:
- If I open a file manager, can I find the photos? If you can browse to them as ordinary pictures, they are hidden, not protected.
- What unlocks it? If it is the same fingerprint or PIN as the phone, then anyone who can unlock your phone can open it. A separate pattern or passphrase is a separate barrier.
- What happens if I forget the lock? If the company can reset it for you, it holds a way in. A vault that only you can open has a recovery phrase you keep instead.
Our checklist for choosing a photo vault app goes through eight questions like these.
Three common myths
- “Locked means encrypted.” Not necessarily. A lock controls who is let in through the front door. Encryption protects the contents even if someone gets in another way, for example by copying files straight off the phone.
- “My phone PIN already protects everything.” It protects the phone while it is locked. Once someone knows the PIN, or has the phone unlocked in their hand, everything the phone itself can open is open.
- “Deleting it from the gallery removes it.” It moves to the gallery’s trash for a while, and copies may exist in backups or in chat apps that saved the picture. Empty the trash and check your backups.
Which one is right for you?
If you only want a photo out of the way, a hidden album is fine. If the photo would cause real trouble in someone else’s hands, use encryption with a key only you control. A vault that is separate from your phone’s own lock adds another layer, because knowing your phone PIN does not open it. If you want to set one up, follow how to keep photos private on Android.
What to do next
If you decide a hidden album is enough, fine: just know what it does and does not do. If you want real protection, set up a vault with its own pattern or passphrase, add the photos, and delete the originals. The step-by-step version is in how to hide photos on Android, and the way encryption works in Seakret is explained in plain words on the security page.