Android folder lock: how to lock a folder on your phone

Updated November 10, 2026

Steps at a glance

• Files by Google: scroll to Collections, tap Safe folder, choose PIN or Pattern and confirm it. Touch and hold files, tap More, then Move to Safe folder.
• Private space: open Settings, Security & privacy, Private space, tap Set up and choose a lock. On recent Android versions, add files with Add, then Add files.
• Samsung Galaxy: open Settings, Security and privacy, More security settings, Secure Folder. Inside it, tap More options, then Add files.
• Vaultopaz: draw a pattern to make a vault, import files through the system file picker and sort them into folders.

Option 1: Files by Google Safe folder

Safe folder is a section of the Files by Google app. It keeps files on the phone’s internal storage using Android’s encrypted storage, keeps them out of search results and categories, and third-party apps cannot open them. Screenshots of Safe folder cannot be taken.

1. Open Files by Google and scroll to Collections.
2. Tap Safe folder and choose PIN or Pattern.
3. Enter the PIN or draw the pattern, confirm it, and tap Got it.
4. To move files in, touch and hold them, tap More, then Move to Safe folder, and confirm with your PIN or pattern.
5. To move a file out, select it inside Safe folder, tap More, then Move out of Safe folder. Stay in Safe folder until the move is done; it goes back to where it came from.

Option 2: Android private space

Private space is a separate space on the phone, technically its own Android profile, on Android 15 or newer. It can lock every time the phone locks, 5 minutes after the screen times out, or only after a restart, and you can lock it by hand from the app list.

1. Open Settings, tap Security & privacy, and under Privacy tap Private space.
2. Confirm with your screen lock, then tap Set up and Got it.
3. Choose your screen lock, or a new pattern, PIN or password for private space, and tap Done.
4. On recent Android versions, add files: open private space, tap Add, then Add files, and choose Copy (the original stays) or Move (the original is removed). They land in the private space Downloads folder.

Option 3: Samsung Secure Folder

On supported Galaxy phones and tablets, Secure Folder is a private area for photos, videos, files and apps. Samsung says everything in it is encrypted by Samsung Knox. Set it up under Settings, Security and privacy, More security settings, Secure Folder, then add files with More options, Add files, or with Move to Secure Folder in Samsung’s own Gallery and My Files. The Samsung guide has the full steps.

Where the built-in options fall short

• Safe folder has no second way in. If you forget the PIN or pattern, the only route Google describes is a reset that deletes the files. Back up to Google Drive does not work for Safe folder, and Google advises against copying its files to a new phone.
• Safe folder relies on the phone’s storage. Google warns that someone with unauthorized access to internal storage may be able to reach the files, and that in rare cases files can become corrupt or deleted.
• Private space has strict conditions. It needs Android 15 or newer and the phone’s main user, and the manufacturer or a work admin can turn it off. It is left out of the device backup, and a forgotten private space lock cannot be recovered.
• Secure Folder is Galaxy only. Samsung notes that some older models may no longer support it, and its US help page says backing up Secure Folder data is no longer supported.

Using a vault app

A vault app turns the idea of a locked folder into a locked set of folders. In Vaultopaz you draw a pattern on a 5 by 5 grid, and that pattern opens its own vault; another pattern opens another vault. See one pattern, one vault.

Inside a vault:

• Any file comes in through the Android system file picker. Vaultopaz does not delete the originals, so you remove them yourself once they are in the vault.

• Nested folders, notes and search. Make folders inside folders, write encrypted notes and edit them in place, search by name and sort by name or newest.

• Long press to manage. Select files, notes and folders to move them, rename one, or delete them. Deleting frees the space, and a folder goes with its contents.

• Open or export. Images, videos, text files and notes open in the viewer. PDFs and other documents are stored and can be exported; a readable copy is written only after you confirm, and the vault keeps its own copy.

• Encryption on the device. AES-256-GCM, with keys wrapped by the phone’s hardware keystore. See encryption on the device.

• Recovery. Nine recovery words, shown once at setup, reopen a vault on the same phone through Use recovery phrase. See recovery phrase.

• Backup. Tap the menu and choose Encrypted backup. The file holds the vault that is open when you export. See encrypted backup.

• Auto-lock. The vault closes immediately or after 30 seconds, 2 or 5 minutes. See auto-lock and screenshot block.

Which option fits you

Compare in detail

See how Vaultopaz compares with Samsung Secure Folder, Keepsafe and calculator photo vaults. If it is mostly photos you want to lock, read how to lock your gallery on Android.