--- title: "Telegram Privacy on iPhone: Hide, Lock and Limit It (iOS 27)" description: "Telegram privacy settings on iPhone: lock it with Face ID, hide it, use passcode Lock, start a Secret Chat and more. Checked for iOS 27." url: https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/telegram lang: en-gb published: 2026-10-31 updated: 2026-10-31 author: "VaultForYou Editorial Team" publisher: VaultForYou --- # Telegram privacy on iPhone: every setting > Every way to hide, lock and limit Telegram 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 - 31 Oct 2026 ## Quick answer You can lock Telegram 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. Telegram has its own lock too: Passcode Lock. Inside the app, start a Secret Chat and archive chats and hide the archive are available. - **Developer:** Telegram FZ-LLC - **Own lock:** Passcode Lock (own code) - **Can be hidden:** Yes (iOS 18+) - **iPad app:** Yes You can lock Telegram 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. Telegram has its own lock too: Passcode Lock. Inside the app, start a Secret Chat and archive chats and hide the archive are available. This page collects every privacy setting for Telegram on iPhone, from iOS and from Telegram's own settings, checked against official help pages in October 2026. ## Telegram guides | Task | Fastest method | Time | Guide | |---|---|---|---| | Hide apps | Hide and Require Face ID | 10 sec | [How to hide Telegram on iPhone](/en-gb/hide-apps/telegram) | | Lock apps | Require Face ID | 10 sec | [How to lock Telegram on iPhone](/en-gb/lock-apps/telegram) | | Hide photos | Control automatic saving to Photos | 1 min | [How to hide photos in Telegram](/en-gb/hide-photos/telegram) | ## What iOS can do with Telegram | Setting | Available for Telegram | 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 -> Telegram -> Show Previews | | Exclude from Siri and search | Yes | Settings -> Siri -> Excluded Apps | | Limit with Screen Time | Yes | Settings -> Screen Time -> Time Allowances | ## Telegram's own privacy settings ### Passcode Lock Go to **Settings -> Privacy and Security**. Sets a separate passcode that locks the Telegram app. On iPhone the section is labeled Passcode & Face ID, with Auto-Lock options from 1 minute to 5 hours, so Face ID can unlock it instead of typing the code. ### Start a Secret Chat Open the profile of the person, tap "...", then Start Secret Chat. Secret chats are end-to-end encrypted and support a self-destruct timer (tap the clock icon in the input field on iOS). ### Archive chats and hide the archive Swipe left on a chat to move it to Archived Chats. Swipe left on the archive to hide it from the chat list, and drag the screen down to see it again. An archived chat returns to the list when it gets a new notification, unless it is muted. ### Control automatic saving to Photos Telegram's auto-save settings let you choose which media is saved automatically to your iPhone's Photos, by chat type (private chats, groups, channels), media type, and size, with exceptions for specific chats. ## Keep Telegram photos out of your camera roll Photos you save from Telegram land in the Photos app, outside any app lock. Move private ones into a vault and delete the originals. > **Lock this in VaultForYou.** Keep Telegram photos in an encrypted vault that opens only with a pattern you draw. [Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/vaultforyou/id0000000000) ## Frequently asked questions ### Can you lock Telegram on iPhone? Yes. Touch and hold Telegram, tap Require Face ID and confirm. It then needs Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode to open. Telegram also has its own lock, Passcode Lock. ### Can you hide Telegram on iPhone? Yes. On iOS 18 or later, touch and hold Telegram, 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 Telegram have its own passcode? Telegram has Passcode Lock. Sets a separate passcode that locks the Telegram app. On iPhone the section is labeled Passcode & Face ID, with Auto-Lock options from 1 minute to 5 hours, so Face ID can unlock it instead of typing the code. It uses a code separate from your iPhone passcode. ### Do Telegram settings sync to my iPad? The iOS lock and hidden status don't sync with iCloud; set them on each device. Telegram 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) - [Telegram FAQ](https://telegram.org/faq) - [Telegram Blog: Chat Folders, Archive, Channel Stats and More](https://telegram.org/blog/folders) - [Telegram Blog: Auto-Save Incoming Media (Profile Photo Maker, Translating Entire Chats...)](https://telegram.org/blog/profile-pics-emoji-translations) - [Telegram Translations: iOS Settings strings (Passcode & Face ID, Auto-Lock)](https://translations.telegram.org/ru/ios/settings/) ## Telegram guides - [How to hide Telegram on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/telegram) - [How to lock Telegram on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/lock-apps/telegram) - [How to hide photos in Telegram](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-photos/telegram) ## Other messaging apps - [Messages privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/messages) - [WhatsApp privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/whatsapp) - [Facebook Messenger privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/messenger) - [Signal privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/signal) - [LINE privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/line) - [Viber privacy on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/viber) ## Browse - [All apps](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps) - [Hide apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps) - [Lock apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/lock-apps) - [Block apps on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/block-apps) - [Hide photos on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/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