How Sealcloak encrypts your photos and files
Hiding a photo and encrypting it are different things. Sealcloak encrypts every file on your phone, so even a copy taken out of the app is unreadable without your key.
Each vault has its own random master key. Every file is encrypted with AES-256-GCM before it's saved. The master key is wrapped using a key derived from your pattern with Argon2id and a key held in Android's hardware-backed Keystore. Nothing leaves your phone, because the app has no internet permission.
Hidden is not the same as encrypted
Many gallery lock apps move photos to a hidden folder and put a password screen in front. Anyone with a file manager or a computer can still find and open the files. With encryption, the files themselves are scrambled. A copy is useless without the key, wherever it ends up.
What happens when you add a photo
- The file is read in chunks and each chunk is encrypted with AES-256-GCM, which also detects any tampering.
- The encrypted file is written to the app's private storage, under a random name that says nothing about what it is.
- The vault's index (names, folders, dates) is encrypted too.
- The original stays in your gallery until you delete it yourself, so you can check the vault copy first.
Keep them locked, offline
Sealcloak encrypts your photos, videos and files on your phone. No account, no cloud, no internet permission.
How your pattern unlocks it
Your pattern is run through Argon2id, a slow, memory-hard function made to resist guessing at scale. The result, together with a key that never leaves Android's Keystore, unwraps your vault's master key. When you lock the vault, the keys are cleared from memory.
No server to hack
Sealcloak has no account, no cloud and no internet permission. There's no copy of your files or keys anywhere except your phone and the backups you choose to make. Read the full picture on the security page.
The honest limits
No security is absolute. A guessable pattern, a phone that's already compromised by malware, or a recovery phrase kept in a photo on the same phone can all undo good encryption. The app's Security checkup in Settings points out the common weak spots.
Frequently asked questions
Is AES-256 really secure?
AES-256 is the standard used to protect sensitive data worldwide, and there's no practical attack on it. In practice, the weak points are guessable passwords and patterns, not the cipher.
Can Sealcloak see my photos?
No. Encryption happens on your phone, the app can't connect to the internet, and we never have your pattern, phrase or keys.
If someone copies the app's files, can they open them?
Not without the key. The files are encrypted, and the key needs your pattern or recovery phrase plus, on the original phone, the Keystore.
Are my backups encrypted too?
Yes. A backup file is encrypted with your vault's recovery phrase or a passphrase you choose. Without it, the file can't be opened.
Intruder photos: see who tried to open your vault
From the 3rd wrong pattern in a row, the front camera photographs each attempt.
Share files securely as a passphrase-locked package
One passphrase-locked file. Send it with any app, and the passphrase separately.
Gallery lock on Android: every way to lock your photos
Built-in private albums, Google Photos Locked Folder, Private space or a vault app, and what each one really protects.