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Set Up a Private Vault in Four Steps

HypaVault needs a 6-digit passcode and nothing else. Keep your 12-word recovery phrase safe, and everything you add is encrypted on your phone before it's saved.

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A man sits on the edge of a bed under a small wall lamp, looking down at the phone in his hands.

From Passcode to First Backup

Four steps, all on your phone. Nothing you store ever reaches us.

  1. 1

    Choose a 6-Digit Passcode

    Open HypaVault and choose a 6-digit passcode. That's the whole sign-up. Easy guesses, such as runs like 123456 or repeats like 111111, are refused.

  2. 2

    Write Down Your Recovery Phrase

    HypaVault shows 12 words once. They reset a forgotten passcode, open your backups and bring the vault to a new phone. They're never stored and can't be copied, so they belong on paper.

  3. 3

    Add Your Private Files

    Tap + to take photos, videos and recordings in the app, import from your gallery or files, or write notes and seed phrases. Every import is checked against the original before it counts. Imported photos stay in your gallery until you delete them there.

  4. 4

    Back Up, and It Locks Itself

    Tap Back Up Now for one encrypted file, checked before it's saved, and keep it wherever you like. The vault locks the moment you leave the app, or after 30 seconds if you choose, and a cover hides it in the app switcher.

What Happens to Every File

The same four things happen to every photo, video, recording, note and document you add, on every plan.

  1. 01

    You Add It

    From the in-app camera or recorder, your photo library, or any file on your phone.

  2. 02

    It's Encrypted

    AES-256-GCM on the phone, with the file's own random 256-bit key, in 4 MB pieces.

  3. 03

    It's Checked

    Compared against the original before it counts. Changes save all at once or not at all.

  4. 04

    It's Saved

    On your phone only, with its name, folder and thumbnail encrypted too.

What to Know Next

Three things that keep a vault safe for the long run.

Backup Reminders

HypaVault reminds you when your last backup is more than 14 days old. Once a vault holds 20 items, it also offers a one-time drill to prove a backup opens.

Moving to a New Phone

Restore an encrypted backup with your recovery phrase, or with Pro send the vault from your old phone over Wi-Fi. After a whole-phone restore, HypaVault asks for each vault's recovery phrase. Restore Purchases brings back Pro.

If You Forget Your Passcode

Tap "Forgot Passcode?" and enter your 12-word recovery phrase, then choose a new passcode. Nobody else can reset it, including us.

Set Up Your Vault Today

Download HypaVault for iPhone, iPad or Android, choose a passcode, and your first private files are a tap away.

Coming Soon toApp StoreComing Soon toGoogle Play

Questions About Getting Started

Setting up a vault takes a passcode and a recovery phrase. Here's what people ask along the way.

  1. Just your phone. Open the app, choose a 6-digit passcode and write down your 12-word recovery phrase. Then your vault is ready.

    Read the Help Article
  2. Weak codes, like runs such as 123456 and repeats such as 111111, are refused because they're the first ones anyone would try.

    Read the Help Article
  3. Because it's never stored, nobody can find it on your phone, including us. It can't be copied either, so write it on paper. It resets a forgotten passcode, opens your backups and brings the vault to a new phone.

    Read the Help Article
  4. HypaVault encrypts every file on your phone with AES-256-GCM before it's saved, each file with its own key. Your 6-digit passcode, stretched with Argon2id and combined with a device key, is what opens the vault.

    Read the Help Article
  5. Tap + and choose Take Photo, Photo Library, Import Documents, Record Audio, New Note or New Folder. Every import is checked against the original before it counts.

    Read the Help Article
  6. They stay there until you delete them. After an import, HypaVault offers to remove the originals and explains how, because Recently Deleted and any cloud photo backup may still hold copies.

    Read the Help Article
  7. The moment you leave the app, by default, or 30 seconds later if you choose. A cover hides the app in the app switcher.

    Read the Help Article
  8. Yes, it's a good habit. Back Up Now makes one encrypted file and checks that it opens. The app reminds you when your last backup is more than 14 days old.

    Read the Help Article