--- title: "Google Privacy on iPhone: Hide, Lock and Limit It (iOS 27)" description: "Google privacy settings on iPhone: lock it with Face ID, hide it, use enable Face ID for Incognito mode, search in Incognito and more. Checked for iOS 27." url: https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps/google lang: en published: 2026-10-31 updated: 2026-10-31 author: "VaultForYou Editorial Team" publisher: VaultForYou --- # Google privacy on iPhone: every setting > Every way to hide, lock and limit Google on iPhone, from iOS and from the app itself. Published 2026-10-31 - Updated 2026-10-31 - By VaultForYou Editorial Team - Checked against iOS 27 - Oct 31, 2026 ## Quick answer You can lock Google with Face ID: touch and hold it and tap Require Face ID. On iOS 18 or later you can also hide it in the locked Hidden folder. Google has its own lock too: Enable Face ID for Incognito mode. Inside the app, search in Incognito, delete search history, auto-delete search history and delete on-device search history are available. - **Developer:** Google - **Own lock:** Enable Face ID for Incognito mode - **Can be hidden:** Yes (iOS 18+) - **iPad app:** Yes You can lock Google with Face ID: touch and hold it and tap Require Face ID. On iOS 18 or later you can also hide it in the locked Hidden folder. Google has its own lock too: Enable Face ID for Incognito mode. Inside the app, search in Incognito, delete search history, auto-delete search history and delete on-device search history are available. This page collects every privacy setting for Google on iPhone, from iOS and from Google's own settings, checked against official help pages in October 2026. ## Google guides | Task | Fastest method | Time | Guide | |---|---|---|---| | Hide apps | Hide and Require Face ID | 10 sec | [How to hide Google on iPhone](/hide-apps/google) | | Lock apps | Require Face ID | 10 sec | [How to lock Google on iPhone](/lock-apps/google) | | Block apps | Time Allowance | 2 min | [How to block Google on iPhone](/block-apps/google) | ## What iOS can do with Google | Setting | Available for Google | Where | |---|---|---| | Lock with Face ID | Yes | Touch and hold the icon -> Require Face ID | | Hide in the Hidden folder | Yes | Touch and hold -> Require Face ID -> Hide and Require Face ID | | Remove from Home Screen | Yes | Touch and hold -> Remove App -> Remove from Home Screen | | Hide notification previews | Yes | Settings -> Notifications -> Google -> Show Previews | | Exclude from Siri and search | Yes | Settings -> Siri -> Excluded Apps | | Limit with Screen Time | Yes | Settings -> Screen Time -> Time Allowances | ## Google's own privacy settings ### Enable Face ID for Incognito mode Go to **Profile picture -> Settings -> Privacy & security**. Asks for Face ID when you come back to an Incognito session after 15 minutes. It protects only Incognito, not the whole app. ### Search in Incognito Incognito in the Google app stops saving your searches and keeps recent searches from appearing below the search bar. ### Delete search history Go to **Profile picture or initial -> Search history -> Delete**. Choose Delete all time or Delete custom range, or delete a single day or search with Delete activity. ### Auto-delete search history Go to **Profile picture or initial -> Search history -> Controls -> Auto-delete activity older than**. Choose 3, 18, or 36 months, then tap Next. ### Delete on-device search history Go to **Profile picture -> Settings -> Privacy & security**. Search history stored on this device is separate from the history in your Google Account. Deleting it doesn't affect your other devices. ### Notification previews Go to **Profile picture or initial -> Settings -> Notifications**. Choose which Google app notifications you get. ### SafeSearch Go to **Profile picture or initial -> Settings -> SafeSearch**. Choose Filter, Blur, or Off. A lock icon means a parent, school, or network controls the setting. ### Family Link supervision On a supervised child's account, SafeSearch is set to Filter and locked by default. Parents can change it in the Family Link app under Controls -> Google Search. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can you lock Google on iPhone? Yes. Touch and hold Google, tap Require Face ID and confirm. It then needs Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode to open. Google also has its own lock, Enable Face ID for Incognito mode. ### Can you hide Google on iPhone? Yes. On iOS 18 or later, touch and hold Google, tap Require Face ID, then Hide and Require Face ID. It moves to the locked Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library and leaves search results. ### Does Google have its own passcode? Google has Enable Face ID for Incognito mode. Asks for Face ID when you come back to an Incognito session after 15 minutes. It protects only Incognito, not the whole app. It uses your iPhone's Face ID or passcode rather than a separate code. ### Do Google settings sync to my iPad? The iOS lock and hidden status don't sync with iCloud; set them on each device. Google has an iPad app, so repeat the steps there. ## Sources - [Apple Support: Lock or hide an app on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/lock-or-hide-an-app-iph00f208d05/ios) - [Google Search Help: Change your Google app settings (iPhone & iPad)](https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2839743?co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS) - [Google Search Help: Find & erase your Google Search history (iPhone & iPad)](https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/6096136?co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS) - [Google Account Help: Delete your activity (iPhone & iPad)](https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/465?co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS) - [Google Search Help: Make Google Search safer with SafeSearch (iPhone & iPad)](https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/510?co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS) ## Google guides - [How to hide Google on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/hide-apps/google) - [How to lock Google on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/lock-apps/google) - [How to block Google on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/block-apps/google) ## Other browsers & search apps - [Google Chrome privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps/chrome) - [Brave privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps/brave) - [DuckDuckGo privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps/duckduckgo) - [Firefox privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps/firefox) ## Browse - [All apps](https://www.vaultforyou.app/apps) - [Hide apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/hide-apps) - [Lock apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/lock-apps) - [Block apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/block-apps) - [Hide photos on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/hide-photos) --- Our guides are written and fact-checked by the VaultForYou team against Apple's own documentation. We make VaultForYou, a private vault app for iPhone. Download on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/vaultforyou/id0000000000