Sometimes my nephew will want to watch a monster truck video on YouTube so I'll pull up a video and hand him my iPhone. But if I take my eyes off him for a moment he finds a way to shoot a video on my camera or post something on social media.
When Apple released iOS 18 in September, the tech giant introduced a feature to lock certain apps on your iPhone. That way you can keep kids and others out of your apps. You can also hide certain apps in their own hidden folder so others are not tempted to open them and invade your privacy. So now I can hand my nephew my iPhone and not worry that he might get into something he shouldn't be in.
Here's how to lock and hide your iPhone apps for an extra layer of security. You can also check out all the features iOS 26 will likely bring to your iPhone this fall.
How to lock your iPhone apps
1. Long press an app.
2. Tap Require Face ID.
3. Tap Require Face ID again.
Locking iPhone apps can help stop your kids from buying random games or apps. Apple/CNET
Now every time you try to access this app, it will need your Face ID or passcode to open. You can't lock every app on your iPhone. Some apps, like Camera, Find My and Settings can't be locked. But you can lock most apps, such as App Store, Messages and third-party apps.
How to hide your iPhone apps
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