Seakret
Why the choice matters
Photo vault apps all promise privacy, but they work very differently. Some only hide photos from view. Some store your files on the company’s servers. Some can reset your vault if you forget your password, which means the company can open it too. The answers are usually in the app’s description, its privacy policy and its Google Play “Data safety” section.
The checklist
- Is it encrypted, or only hidden? Look for a named method (such as AES-256) and a statement that files are encrypted before they are stored, ideally including file names, albums and notes, not just the pictures.
- Who holds the key? The safest design derives the key from something only you know, a pattern or passphrase. If the company can reset your vault for you, it can also open it.
- Does it need an account? Every account is another place where something can go wrong. No account means less to leak.
- What permissions does it ask for? A vault should not need access to all your files or storage. Apps that use Android’s own photo picker only see what you choose.
- Where do backups go? If it offers backup, check whether it goes to your own cloud account or the company’s, and whether it is encrypted before it leaves your phone.
- What happens if you forget your lock? A good answer is a recovery phrase you keep. An answer of “we can reset it” means someone else holds a way in.
- Does it handle your videos and documents too? Photos are rarely the only private thing on a phone.
- Does it say what it cannot do? Honest apps do not claim to be unbreakable. See the red flags below.
Red flags
- Words like “unhackable”, “100% secure” or “military-grade” with no explanation of how.
- No privacy policy, or one that does not say what happens to your files.
- A reset-my-password option that gets you back into the vault without any key you hold.
- Permissions that have nothing to do with storing photos, such as contacts or location.
- A required account just to look at files that are stored on your phone.
How Seakret answers the checklist
| Question | Seakret |
|---|---|
| Encrypted or hidden? | Encrypted with AES-256-GCM before storage. File names, albums, notes and thumbnails are encrypted too. |
| Who holds the key? | You do. It is derived from your pattern or passphrase (Argon2id) and protected by the Android Keystore. |
| Account? | None. No sign-up and no server of its own. |
| Permissions | No access to your gallery or storage. You choose items with Android’s photo picker and file picker, or capture them with your camera app. |
| Backups | Optional, to your own Google Drive, encrypted on your phone first. How it works. |
| Forgot the lock? | A 24-word recovery phrase. We cannot reset it for you (details). |
| Videos and documents? | Yes. Photos, videos and files, with more than one vault. |
The full explanation, in plain words, is on the security page, and the exact data handling is in the privacy policy.
Seakret Pro
Seakret Pro adds Duress Mode and a choice of app icon and name. If you want to know how to hide photos on your phone in the first place, start with how to hide photos on Android.