We're here to help. Most answers are below — if you're still stuck, email us.
No. There is no sign-up, no email, and no login. On first launch you simply create a PIN. Everything stays on your device unless you turn on iCloud Backup.
Once unlocked, open the Recents tab or an album, tap the + button, and choose Import from Photos or Take Photo. Imported items are encrypted immediately. You can optionally have the originals removed from your Photos library after import (Settings → "Delete from Photos After Import").
The Albums tab lets you create albums (and sub-albums) and set a separate password on any album. Photos in a locked album are hidden from Recents until you unlock that album.
We can't — but you can, with your Recovery Key. Prive is zero-knowledge: we have no server and no access to your PIN or your data, so there is no backdoor on our side. On the lock screen tap Forgot PIN?, enter your 24-word Recovery Key, and choose a new PIN. (If you enabled Face ID, you can also unlock with that.) Your Recovery Key is shown in Settings → Recovery Key — write it down when you set up the app. Without it, a forgotten PIN means the vault cannot be opened.
A 24-word phrase (Settings → Recovery Key) that is the backup of your encryption key. It does two things: it resets a forgotten PIN, and it restores your vault if iCloud Keychain ever loses your key. Anyone with these words can open your vault, so keep them on paper somewhere safe — never in plain notes or screenshots.
Settings → toggle Face ID. The first time you enable it, iOS will ask for permission.
By default, only on this device. If you turn on iCloud Backup (Settings), your encrypted data is also backed up and synced for use with iCloud — inside your own Apple account. We never see it.
Your vault only syncs when iCloud Backup is on. On the new device, set your PIN, then either tap Restore from iCloud on the empty Recents screen, or go to Settings and turn on iCloud Backup. Make sure the device is signed in to the same iCloud account and has iCloud Keychain enabled.
Full files download from iCloud on demand. Tap the item and wait a moment while it downloads, and make sure you have an internet connection.
Settings → turn off iCloud Backup and choose "Delete iCloud Copy", or use Delete All iCloud Data. Your photos remain on the current device; only the iCloud copy is removed. Note: if another device still has Backup on, it may re-upload its own copy.
No. Your media is encrypted with AES-256 on your device before it is ever stored or backed up. We have no server and collect no data. See our Privacy Policy.
Off by default. When enabled (Settings → Break-in Alerts), Prive can take a front-camera photo after repeated wrong PIN attempts so you can see who tried to open your vault.
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