Debt and Bankruptcy Papers on iPhone: Keep Them Private
A collector's letter, a court notice and a payment plan are now photos in your camera roll. You need them close, and you would rather nobody at home or work scrolled past them. Scan them into one private place and keep every page.
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What do I need to know?
- Keep everything. Letters, dates and payment confirmations are your record of what was said and paid.
- Photos is the wrong place. Anyone who unlocks your phone can scroll to them, and iCloud Photos copies them to your other devices.
- Notifications can give you away. A collector's text can show on your Lock Screen.
What should I keep?
- Every letter and email from a collector or creditor, with the date you got it.
- Notes of each call: date, time, name, what was agreed.
- Proof of every payment.
- Court papers, filings and anything from a bankruptcy trustee.
- Credit reports you request.
The CFPB has debt collection guides. The US Courts site explains bankruptcy basics.
How do I scan papers without filling Photos?
These steps are for iOS 27. Apple's scanning page has the full detail.
- In the Files app, tap the More button, then Scan Documents.
- Hold the page in view. In Auto mode it scans on its own.
- Tap Keep Scan, then Done, and choose where to save.
- Move the PDF into a vault, one folder per creditor or case.
Already photographed them? Move them into the vault, delete the originals, then empty Recently Deleted in Collections → Utilities (Apple).
How do I stop texts and emails showing?
- Hide previews: Settings → Notifications → Show Previews (Apple). You can set it per app.
- Lock your banking and email apps: touch and hold the app, then tap Require Face ID (Apple).
When should I get advice?
If you are sued, asked to sign something, or thinking about bankruptcy, talk to a lawyer. Many areas have free legal aid for people on low incomes. This page is not legal or financial advice.
What this doesn't protect against
A vault does not hide your debts from creditors, courts or credit reports. It does not protect copies in your email, cloud drive or bank app. If you lose both your pattern and your recovery phrase, the vault cannot be opened. Keep paper originals too.
Do it with Cryptile
Cryptile holds photos, PDFs and notes in folders, encrypted with AES-256-GCM under a key from your pattern. Search inside the vault (Plus) reads text in photos and PDFs on the device. That helps you find an account number fast.
Cryptile is free for up to 2 vaults, 100 photos and 10 videos. Plus removes the limits for $19.99 a year (7-day free trial) or $39.99 once. The price is the same every day.
Cryptile Send, Files access and shared vaults are coming and are not available yet.