Encrypted Photo Backup Options for iPhone Compared
If you already use iCloud Photos, turning on Advanced Data Protection is the simplest way to get end-to-end encrypted photo backup, with no new app. Ente and Proton Drive do the same job as separate services. An encrypted vault backup covers only the private photos you keep in the vault.
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What do I need to know?
- End-to-end means the provider cannot read it. Each option below says so on its own pages.
- Recovery is your job. With end-to-end encryption, a lost key or recovery method can mean lost photos.
- Library backup and vault backup are different. One copies everything; the other copies a chosen few.
How do the options compare?
| Question | iCloud + Advanced Data Protection | Ente Photos | Proton Drive | Cryptile vault backup |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it backs up | Your iCloud Photos library | Your photo library | Your photo library, plus files | Only what is in the vault |
| End-to-end encrypted | Yes, once turned on | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free storage | Not stated on the pages checked | 10 GB | 5 GB | Your own iCloud account. Included in the free plan |
| Account | Apple Account | Ente account (email) | Proton account | None |
| Recovery | Device passcode, recovery contact or recovery key | Not stated on the pages checked | Not stated on the pages checked | 9-word recovery phrase, no reset |
| Gaps the vendor names | Shared Albums are not end-to-end encrypted | Not stated | Not stated | Lose the pattern and phrase, and the vault is gone |
| Other devices | Your Apple devices | Android, iOS, web, Mac, Linux, Windows | Across your devices | iPhone and iPad; sync is coming |
Checked 2026-10-26 on each vendor's own pages: Apple's iCloud data security overview and Advanced Data Protection page; Ente's site and App Store listing; Proton's App Store listing and pricing.
How do I turn on Advanced Data Protection?
These are Apple's steps for iPhone with iOS 16.2 or later. Apple requires a recovery contact or recovery key first.
- Open Settings.
- Tap your name, then tap iCloud.
- Scroll down and tap Advanced Data Protection, then Turn on Advanced Data Protection.
- Follow the steps to review your recovery methods.
With it on, Apple says access to your data on iCloud.com is off by default.
When is Ente or Proton Drive the better fit?
- Ente says it stores backups in three locations on paid plans, keeps originals with metadata, and runs on Android and the web.
- Proton Drive says it backs up photos in original quality, and you can share links with a password and expiry.
- Both suit you if you want to leave iCloud Photos, or use Android too.
Fuller details are in Cryptile vs Proton Drive.
Where does a vault backup fit?
A vault is for the photos you want out of your main library, behind a separate secret. Cryptile's backup copies the vault to your private iCloud as ciphertext. Read how vault backups to iCloud work.
You can combine them. Use one library backup for everyday photos, and a vault for the private set.
What this doesn't protect against
End-to-end encrypted backup does not stop someone who unlocks your phone. Anything already in your Camera Roll is visible to them. Photos you share through a link or shared album may sit outside the encryption, as Apple says of Shared Albums.
Do it with Cryptile
Cryptile backs up each vault to your iCloud as ciphertext, on by default and included free. Each vault restores with its own 9-word recovery phrase.
Cryptile is free for 2 vaults, 100 photos and 10 videos. Plus is $19.99 a year (7-day free trial) or $39.99 once.