Does Full Access to Photos Include Hidden Photos?
It can. Apple gives apps a setting so a library fetch can "include all assets regardless of their hidden state." Hidden photos are left out by default, but an app with Full Access can ask for them.
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What do I need to know?
- Hidden is not a permission boundary. It is a flag on a photo, and apps can read past it.
- Limited Access is the safer choice. The app sees only the photos you pick.
- The photo picker needs no access at all. Apple says it runs in a separate process and is "private by default".
What does Apple's documentation say?
Apple's PhotoKit has a setting called includeHiddenAssets. Apple's description: "If the value is false (the default), fetches exclude assets whose isHidden property is true. If the value is true, fetches include all assets regardless of their hidden state."
So an app does not see hidden photos by accident. It sees them if its developer chose to.
Source: Apple Developer, includeHiddenAssets.
Which apps can do this?
Apps that have full read access to your library. Apple says that, since iOS 14, an app "may only access the user's Photos library if they explicitly authorize it". The limited library lets you "select specific assets and resources to share with an app".
Source: Apple Developer, enhanced privacy in your photos app.
How do I check which apps have Full Access?
On iOS 27:
- Open Settings → Privacy & Security.
- Tap Photos. A list of apps that asked for access appears.
- Tap each app and change it to Limited Access or None where you can.
- Go back and tap App Privacy Report to see how apps use the permissions you granted.
Source: Apple, Control access to information in apps.
Which apps actually need Full Access?
Few. Backup apps, photo editors that manage your whole library, and some printing services may. Messaging and social apps usually work with the picker or Limited Access. If an app stops working, you can grant more later.
How do I keep photos away from every app?
Take them out of the library. A photo in an encrypted vault is not in the Photos library, so no Photos permission reaches it. Delete the original from Photos, then from Recently Deleted.
Our guide to encrypting photos on iPhone has the steps. For what Hidden does and does not do, see is the Hidden album encrypted?
What this doesn't protect against
Cutting access stops future reads, not past ones. An app that already copied photos to its servers still has them. A vault does not stop someone with your unlocked phone and your vault pattern. If you lose both your Cryptile pattern and its recovery phrase, the vault is gone.
Do it with Cryptile
Cryptile keeps photos outside the Photos library, encrypted with AES-256-GCM under a key from your pattern. There is no account and no server, and the developer never holds your keys.
Cryptile is free for up to 2 vaults, 100 photos and 10 videos in total. Plus removes the limits for $19.99 a year (7-day free trial) or $39.99 once.