If you wish to hand your phone to someone else, you need make sure they can't launch your apps. Secret stuff can be found in WhatsApp, Gmail, and the image gallery, all of which you may want to keep private. But don't worry, you can use an app lock option to keep important information safe from inquisitive eyes.
How To Lock Apps On iPhone With A Password Or TouchID
iPhones are currently one of the most popular smartphones on the market, with a large market share. While these devices are simple to understand and operate, they lack some of the functionality found on their Android equivalents.
The App Lock feature is one of those features that has been available on Android smartphones for a long time but has never made it to the iOS versions. Fortunately, there are a couple workarounds for getting this feature to operate on the iPhone, and this tutorial will show you how to use them.
Read More: Google Pixel 6 could crash iPhone 13 party with launch
How to Lock Apps on iOS?
Method 1: Use this method to Lock First-Party Apps
Because iOS lacks system-level support for locking apps individually, the ability to lock apps individually is currently limited. You may achieve a similar effect with a few workarounds and tweaks. To lock the first-party apps on iOS, follow the steps below.
- Open the Settings app on your phone.
- After that, go to the Content and Privacy Restrictions section and enable the Screen Time tab.
- Now tap on the Allowed Apps option and turn off toggles for all the apps that you do not want to use
- Return to the home screen to save your changes.
You'll have to use the Restrictions function on iPhones running iOS 11 or older. Open the General section of the Settings app. Scroll down to the Restrictions tab and click it to open it; then click Enable Restrictions. You'll have to enter and confirm a new passcode. After you've enabled the restrictions with a new passcode, you'll be given a number of options. The main disadvantage is that this only applies to Apple's first-party apps.
You may prevent disabled apps from displaying on the home screen by swiping the green toggle symbol to the off position for all apps employing this strategy. While this isn't much of a lock, it does stop the app from working and serves as a temporary app removal technique. This solution is less than ideal for most users because the apps you lock here are not accessible until you re-allow them from the limitations tab.
Read More: iPhone 13 launch date confirmed for September 14
Method 2: Lock Apps On iPhone using Screen Time Limits Feature
You can also set a lock on the app using the time restrictions feature, which was introduced in iOS 12.
- Open the Screen Time tab in the Settings app.
- Then go to the App Limits section and select Add Limit.
- Now you'll see a list of apps, and you'll need to determine which ones you want to restrict access to. To do so, click the checkbox to the left of the app category you wish to restrict, such as Social Networking.
- By tapping through a category, you can restrict only certain apps to that category.
- Choose a time limit for the app category's use; you may establish a time limit for the app category's use and specify the days that this restriction will be active; then hit the Add button to save the choices.
The app will lock after the specified time limit has been reached, but you can always extend the time limit by choosing “Ask for More Time” and entering the passcode to unlock it.
Read More: New iphone 13 release date
Method 3: Lock Apps on iPhone Using Guided Access
Another nuclear app lock option is Guided Access, which prevents you from leaving an app you've already opened. This can be very useful when you need to give your phone to another user for a specific app on your phone but are concerned that they will go elsewhere without your permission.
- To enable Guided Access, head over to Settings and select Accessibility
- Now select Guided Access and and enable the toggle.
- Now head over to Passcode Settings and set Guided Access Passcode
The guided access feature is quite interesting. It allows you to restrict your device's use to a single app. To enable the Guided Access feature, simply triple-press the power button or touch-ID in any app. These features work by locking the device to a single app and come in handy when you are handing your phone River to friends or family and are concerned that they will peek into other apps and check your text messages or Instagram.
To exit guided mode, triple-press the power button or touch-id, enter the secure password, and click End at the top right.
Also Read: Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max Price in India, Full Specs
Method 4: Lock Apps on iPhone Using a Third-Party Apps
On the iPhone, there are no official third-party apps that allow users to lock any app, whereas we have a plethora of apps for this on Android. Installing third-party apps such as BioProtect, Locktopus, and AppLocker is the best option here. These apps are only supported on jailbroken iPhones, and we personally do not recommend using these apps or the entire jailbreaking process because it is only intended for advanced users. You can, however, experiment with these if you so desire.
Does pixel 6 having inbuilt app lock features?
Nothing of the sort is provided inbuilt on the Pixels. You may be able to find third party locker apps that simulate the functionality, but I have never used one and I'm not sure how secure they are (will they prevent their uninstallation, for example?)
What you could do is create a new user on your phone and keep work related apps and stuff there (and obviously set a screen lock for it), and keep all the other stuff in admin user. That way, even if you give someone access to admin account, they won't be able to access your work related things unless they know the password to that other user.