How to Lock WhatsApp with Fingerprint or Face ID on iPhone and Android

Your phone lock is not the same as a WhatsApp lock. The moment you hand an unlocked phone to someone — to show a photo, to let a child play a game, to pass it across a table — every chat in WhatsApp is open. There is no second prompt, no warning, nothing between a curious thumb and years of private conversations.

WhatsApp has a built-in fix, and it takes about a minute to switch on. There are two of them, in fact: one locks the whole app, the other locks a single chat. This guide covers both, on iPhone and Android, plus the secret-code trick that hides locked chats entirely — and the limits you should know before you rely on any of it.

App Lock or Chat Lock — which one do you need

WhatsApp gives you two separate locks, and they solve different problems:

If you only lock one thing, lock the whole app. Chat Lock is the extra layer for the conversations that need privacy even from someone you trust with the rest of your phone.

Lock WhatsApp on Android

1. Update WhatsApp to the latest version from the Google Play Store first — the menu names below are the current ones.
2. Open WhatsApp, tap the three dots at the top right, then tap Settings.
3. Tap Privacy, then scroll down and tap App Lock. On older versions of the app the same screen is called Fingerprint lock — same feature, older label.
4. Turn on Unlock with biometric and confirm with your fingerprint or face when prompted.
5. Choose when WhatsApp should lock: Immediately, after 1 minute, or after 30 minutes. Immediately is the safest choice on a phone other people pick up.

On the same screen you can also decide whether message content shows in notifications while the app is locked. Turn that off if you do not want message text visible on the lock screen. Fingerprint lock needs Android 6.0 or later and a phone that supports the official fingerprint API — a small number of older Samsung models, including the Galaxy S5, Note 4 and Note 8, are reported as unsupported.

Lock WhatsApp on iPhone

1. Open WhatsApp and tap Settings at the bottom right.
2. Tap Privacy, then tap App Lock. On older versions of the app this is labelled Screen Lock.
3. Turn on Require Face ID — or Require Touch ID on iPhones with a Home button.
4. Confirm with Face ID or Touch ID when prompted.
5. Choose when it locks: Immediately, after 1 minute, after 15 minutes, or after 1 hour. The exact choices vary slightly by WhatsApp version; Immediately is the safest.

If Face ID or Touch ID fails, WhatsApp falls back to your iPhone passcode, so you are never permanently locked out of your own chats.

Lock a single chat with Chat Lock

Chat Lock moves one conversation out of your main chat list and into a Locked chats folder that needs your fingerprint, face or passcode to open. The other person is not notified.

1. Tap and hold the chat in your chat list, then tap Lock chat. You can also open the chat, tap the contact or group name at the top, and tap Chat Lock.
2. Confirm with your fingerprint, Face ID or phone passcode.
3. To open it again, swipe down on your chat list and tap Locked chats, then authenticate.

You can lock any chat, including group chats and muted chats. If you have not set up device authentication yet, WhatsApp asks you to create one first — there is no lock without a phone passcode, fingerprint or face.

Locked chats stay locked if you switch phones: our guide to backing up WhatsApp chats on iPhone and Android explains the restore, and WhatsApp's help pages confirm the lock carries over — you need device authentication set up on the new phone to open them.

Hide the Locked chats folder with a secret code

By default, anyone scrolling your chat list can see the Locked chats row and know something is protected. A secret code removes even that trace:

1. Swipe down on your chat list and tap Locked chats.
2. Tap Settings > Secret code.
3. Enter a code — a word, a phrase, numbers, even emojis — then enter it again to confirm.
4. Go back and turn on Hide locked chats. The folder disappears from your chat list.
5. To find it again, tap the search bar at the top of WhatsApp and type your secret code.

What locking does not protect

A lock stops someone opening WhatsApp on your phone. It does not do everything:

• Notifications and calls still get through. You can reply to a message from a notification and answer a WhatsApp call without unlocking the app.
• Anyone who knows your device passcode can open it. Face ID and fingerprint both fall back to the passcode, so a shared passcode defeats the lock. A secret code on locked chats is the one barrier your passcode does not open.
• Linked devices are not locked. WhatsApp Web and the desktop apps mirror your chats; the lock lives on your phone only.
• It is not extra encryption. Your messages are already end-to-end encrypted in transit — the lock stops eyes on your screen, not interception. Skip third-party "WhatsApp lock" apps from outside the Play Store or App Store; they are a common malware vector and WhatsApp's own lock does the job.

For the rest of your privacy setup, the same principle applies: hide what you do not want seen. Our guides to hiding your online status on WhatsApp, hiding your WhatsApp Status from specific contacts and turning off read receipts cover the other half of it.

Two more locks worth turning on

• Two-step verification. This is a 6-digit PIN for your WhatsApp *account*, not the app: go to Settings > Account > Two-step verification and turn it on. It stops someone else registering your number on a new phone. It does not lock the app, so it complements App Lock rather than replacing it.
• Lock WhatsApp from the Home Screen (iPhone, iOS 18 or later). Touch and hold the WhatsApp icon, tap Require Face ID, then tap Require Face ID again. The app now asks for Face ID every time it opens, without touching WhatsApp's own settings. Choose Hide and Require Face ID instead and the icon moves into a locked Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library.
• Your phone maker's own app lock (Android). Samsung's Secure Folder and Xiaomi's App Lock can lock WhatsApp at system level with a PIN, pattern or fingerprint. Useful if your WhatsApp version is old — but the built-in App Lock above is the simpler route when it is available.

If the lock will not turn on

• App Lock or Fingerprint lock is missing. Update WhatsApp — the current name is App Lock, and very old versions only show Fingerprint lock or nothing at all.
• Biometrics are greyed out. Set up a fingerprint or face unlock in the phone's system settings first, then come back to WhatsApp.
• Face ID will not enable on iPhone. Check iPhone Settings > Face ID & Passcode and allow Face ID for WhatsApp, and make sure a passcode is set.
• It locks, then never asks again. Check the delay you picked — anything other than Immediately leaves a window after you leave the app. Set it to Immediately on a shared phone.
• You locked a chat and cannot find it. Swipe down on the chat list for the Locked chats folder, or type your secret code into the search bar if you hid the folder.

FAQ