Real encryption · No tracking · No subscription

Your private
photo vault.

Hide your photos and videos behind military-grade encryption. No accounts, no cloud, no data collection. Pay once, no subscription.

Get Obscura Free How it works
Military-Grade Encryption AES-256-GCM with 600,000-round PBKDF2 key derivation on every photo, video, and database
Fully Offline Zero network access required. Works on a plane, underground, anywhere
$14.99, Own It Forever Pay once, own Pro permanently. No annual fees, no subscription to cancel
No Account, No Email No sign-up, no login, nothing to create. Open the app and go

How Obscura works

Three steps. Everything happens on your device.

1

Set a password

Create a vault with your own password. It never leaves your device and is never stored anywhere.

2

Import your photos

Move photos and videos from your camera roll directly into the vault. The originals can be deleted from Photos.

3

They're encrypted instantly

Every file is protected with AES-256-GCM the moment it arrives. No server call, no cloud upload, no account sync. Without your password, the files are unreadable binary data to anyone, including us.

What most photo vault apps don't tell you

The category is full of vague claims. Here's the honest difference.

Most photo vault apps
Obscura
✗Store photos on a remote server
✓Everything stays on your device
✗Require an account to function
✓No account, no email, no login
✗Include analytics or tracking SDKs
✓Zero data collection, zero telemetry
✗Charge $40 to $120 per year
✓$14.99 once, own forever
✗Vague "military-grade" claims, cipher never named
✓Named cipher: AES-256-GCM with 600K PBKDF2 rounds
✗Password recovery exists, meaning there is a back door
✓No recovery = no back door. Privacy is mathematical

* Based on publicly listed pricing and features of the top-ranked photo vault apps in the App Store as of April 2026.

Encryption

Encryption that doesn't cut corners

Every photo, video, and database is protected with AES-256, the same standard used to protect classified government information.

✓ Your password is run through 600,000 rounds of PBKDF2 before becoming a key. Guessing it by trial and error would take longer than any attacker can afford.
✓ Videos are decrypted only while you are watching them. No unencrypted copy of a video ever lands on your phone's storage
✓ Face ID and Touch ID unlock via Secure Enclave key storage
✓ Auto-lock with configurable timeout. Failed attempts trigger progressive delays: 5s, 15s, 30s, 60s, then 5 minutes
✓ The moment the vault locks, encryption keys are wiped from memory immediately. Nothing lingers that someone could later recover
✓ When you unlock, the app checks every vault before showing a result. The time it takes is designed not to reveal which vault you opened
✓ Each vault is padded with random data to a random size between 2 and 15 MB, so empty vaults and vaults with photos look about the same on disk
256-bit AES-GCM key size
600K PBKDF2 rounds
0 Data collected
10 Hidden vault slots
Obscura encrypting and saving photos with AES-256-GCM
Hidden Vaults

Hidden in plain sight.

Obscura keeps 10 encrypted vault slots in place at all times. Only your password unlocks a real vault. If you want extra protection in case someone asks to see your photos, create a second vault and fill it with photos you are comfortable sharing. When asked, you can unlock that one instead, and they see a real, unlocked vault with real content. Inside the app there is no vault list, no count, and no way to browse between vaults, no matter how many you have. On your phone's storage, real and empty vaults are built the same way and given the same random padding, so even someone with direct access to your files would have a hard time telling which is which.

Read the full details and best practices.

10 encrypted vaults in Obscura, designed to look the same on your phone

From the founder

Why Obscura exists

I built Obscura after realising the photo vault apps at the top of the App Store either send your photos to a server, charge $120 a year for the privilege, or both. There was no app that worked the way privacy actually works: completely offline, no account, no analytics, and a price you pay once.

So I built it. If something isn't working or you have a question, email support@orlio.io. I read every message.

Andrew, Founder

Everything Obscura does.

Security at the core. A full set of photo tools. All offline. All encrypted.

Security

AES-256 Encryption

Every photo, video, and database entry encrypted with AES-256. Keys stay on your device.

Face ID & Touch ID

Biometric unlock stored in the Secure Enclave. Your biometrics never leave your device.

Hidden Vaults

10 vaults on your phone, whether you use them all or not. Empty vaults look the same as real ones, so it is hard to tell which is which.

Tools

Built-in Photo Editor

Crop, rotate, flip, and create collages without ever leaving the encrypted vault.

Duplicate Detection

Automatically find and clean up duplicate photos in batches.

Live Photo Extraction

Extract individual frames from Live Photos directly inside the vault.

Backup & Access

Encrypted Export

Export your vault as an encrypted .obscura file. Safe to store in iCloud or anywhere.

Auto-Lock

Configurable timeout and progressive rate limiting protect against unauthorized access.

Fully Offline

Zero internet required. No servers, no accounts, no way for anyone to see your photos.

Start free. Upgrade when ready.

Full encryption is free. Pay once to remove every limit.

Most photo vault apps charge $40 to $120 per year. Obscura costs $14.99 once.*

Free
$0
Start today, no credit card needed
✓ AES-256 encryption
✓ Face ID & Touch ID
✓ Photo editing & collages
✓ Auto-lock & rate limiting
✓ Duplicate detection
× Up to 50 photos (not unlimited)
× Single vault only
× No folder passwords
× No vault export
Download Free
Pro, one-time purchase
$14.99
Pay once. Own forever. No subscription.
✓ Everything in the free tier
✓ Unlimited photos & videos
✓ 10 Hidden Vaults for extra privacy
✓ Folder-level passwords
✓ Encrypted vault export & import
Upgrade to Pro · $14.99

Download free, upgrade to Pro inside the app

* Based on publicly listed subscription pricing of the top-ranked photo vault apps in the App Store as of April 2026.

Common questions

Straight answers to the questions people ask before downloading.

What happens if I forget my password?
Your photos cannot be recovered. There is no reset, no back door, no recovery email. This is by design. We cannot be compelled to hand over your data because we simply don't have it. Write your password down and store it somewhere safe.
Does Obscura connect to the internet?
Never, for photos. The app requires zero network access to function. Your password never leaves your device.
Can Obscura employees see my photos?
No. Your photos are encrypted on-device before anything happens with them. There is no server, no account system, and no technical mechanism to access your data. Obscura itself does not collect installation, usage, or analytics data.
Is my vault included in iCloud Backup?
Yes, by default. iCloud Backup is what iOS uses to back up your entire phone (apps, settings, and data) so you can restore everything when switching to a new device or after a loss. Obscura's vault data is included in that backup automatically. Because every file is already encrypted on your device before the backup runs, whatever ends up in iCloud is encrypted binary data. Without your vault password it is unreadable to anyone, including Apple. To exclude the vault from iCloud Backup: Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups > [your device] > Show All Apps > toggle off Obscura Photo Vault.
What are Hidden Vaults and why do they matter?

Hidden Vaults is Obscura's privacy feature that makes it hard to tell which of your vaults hold real photos and which are empty. It works on two levels.

Inside the app, there is no vault list, no count, and no way to browse between vaults. No matter how many vaults you have, the app reveals nothing about them. The only way into a vault is to enter its specific password.

On your phone's storage, Obscura keeps 10 encrypted vaults in place at all times. The unused ones are real, valid vaults, just empty, built the same way as your real ones. Even someone with direct access to your phone's files would have a hard time telling which of the 10 vaults hold real content.

If someone asks to see your photos, you can fill a second vault with photos you are comfortable sharing, and unlock that one. They see a normal vault with normal content. Read the full details and best practices.

Is Obscura free?
Yes. Obscura is free to download and use with full AES-256-GCM encryption, Face ID and Touch ID unlock, photo editing, and auto-lock. The free tier supports up to 50 photos. Obscura Pro is a one-time purchase of $14.99 that unlocks unlimited photos and videos, up to 10 vault slots, folder-level passwords, and encrypted vault export. There is no subscription.
How do I hide photos on my iPhone?
Download Obscura Photo Vault from the App Store, set a password, and import the photos you want to protect. Each photo is encrypted with AES-256-GCM the moment it enters the vault. Once imported, you can delete the originals from your photo library. Your hidden photos are only accessible by entering your vault password or using Face ID.
What encryption does Obscura use?
Obscura uses AES-256-GCM, the same encryption standard trusted by banks and governments. Your password is run through 600,000 rounds of PBKDF2 key derivation, which makes guessing attacks impractical. Encryption keys live only in memory and are erased the moment the vault locks. When you unlock, the app checks every vault before showing a result, so the time it takes is designed not to reveal which vault is yours. Each vault is padded with random data to a random size between 2 and 15 MB, so empty and lightly used vaults look about the same on disk.
How is Obscura different from the iPhone Hidden Album?
The built-in Hidden Album in iOS moves photos out of your main library but does not encrypt them. Anyone with your device passcode can access the Hidden Album. Obscura encrypts every photo individually with AES-256-GCM and requires a separate vault password. Obscura also includes the Hidden Vaults feature, works fully offline, and collects no usage analytics or telemetry.
Can I move my vault to a new iPhone?
Yes. If you restore from an iCloud or local backup, your encrypted vault transfers automatically. You can also use the encrypted .obscura export feature to create a portable vault file and import it on your new device. The export file is fully encrypted and can only be opened with your vault password.
Is Obscura safe for storing private photos?
Obscura is designed so that only you can access your photos. Every file is encrypted with AES-256-GCM on your device. There is no server, no account, and no way for anyone, including the developer, to view your data. The app collects zero analytics and requires zero network access. If you forget your password, your photos cannot be recovered, because no back door exists.

Encrypted. Offline.
Yours.

Your photos are private by design, not by promise. Free to start. $14.99 to unlock everything, once.

Download Obscura Free