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Velum vs Private Photo Vault: Which Android Vault Keeps You Private?
By the llcloud team 6 min read
The short answer
Velum is the vault to pick. Private Photo Vault shows ads in its free version and needs Premium and an account for its cloud backup. Velum has no ads and no account, encrypts every file name and thumbnail with a key from your pattern, and backs up an encrypted copy free to a folder you choose.
Choose Velum. It encrypts every photo, video, thumbnail and file name on your phone with AES-256-GCM, using a key from your pattern, and needs no account at all. It has no ads and backs up free to a folder you choose. Private Photo Vault's free version contains ads, and its Cloud Vault backup needs Premium, an account and internet.
Private Photo Vault is one of the best known vault apps on Android, with over 10 million downloads on Google Play. Velum takes a stricter line: everything is encrypted on your phone, nothing needs an account, and the app shows you what your files look like to anyone else. This comparison is as of October 2026 and takes its Private Photo Vault facts from its Google Play listing and its own website.
Velum vs Private Photo Vault at a glance
| Velum | Private Photo Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption named | ✓ AES-256-GCM, Argon2id | ✓ AES (AES-256 per its FAQ) |
| File names and thumbnails encrypted | ✓ | Not stated |
| Key comes from your unlock code | ✓ your pattern | Stated for Cloud Vault only |
| Needs an account | ✗ | ✗ on the phone, ✓ for Cloud Vault |
| Ads in the free version | ✗ | ✓ (Ad-Free is Premium) |
| Encrypted backup in the free version | ✓ to a folder you choose | Not stated (Cloud Vault is Premium) |
| Cloud backup | ✓ Google Drive (Pro) | ✓ Cloud Vault (Premium) |
| iPhone app | ✗ | ✓ |
| Decoy vault | ✓ (Pro) | ✓ (Premium, Fake PIN) |
| Duress pattern | ✓ (Pro) | Not stated |
| Break-in alerts | ✗ | ✓ (Premium) |
| Face-down lock | ✓ | ✓ |
| Disguised app icon | ✓ (Pro) | Not stated |
| Imports checked before originals are removed | ✓ | Not stated |
| Forgot your code | 9 word recovery phrase | Recovery email |
How does each app encrypt your photos?
Private Photo Vault's website says files stored in the app use AES encryption, and its FAQ says AES-256. Its security page explains how the optional Cloud Vault works: files get another AES-256 layer on your device before upload, the key comes from your Cloud Vault password, and that password is hashed with Argon2id and never sent to its servers. For the vault on your phone itself, the site does not say where the key comes from, and it does not say whether file names and thumbnails are encrypted. The security page also notes that it is product documentation, not an independent security audit.
Velum applies one model to everything on the phone. Every photo, video, thumbnail and file name is encrypted with AES-256-GCM through Google's Tink library. The key comes from the pattern you draw, stretched with Argon2id so guessing it is slow. You can check the result yourself: "What others see" shows any photo next to the same file as stored on your phone, which is random noise with no name and no type. If you want the full walk-through, read how Velum encrypts a photo.
Velum also protects the moment you move photos in. Every import is decrypted back and checked against the original before Velum offers to remove it from your gallery, and your phone asks once to confirm. Our guide on how to hide photos on Android explains why hiding a photo and encrypting it are not the same thing.
Do you need an account?
Private Photo Vault works on the phone without an account and offline by default. Its Cloud Vault backup and sync need Premium, an account and an internet connection.
Velum never asks for one. There is no email, no sign-up and no password on a server, so there is nothing to leak or reset. Your pattern unlocks the vault. Google Drive is optional and only used for Pro backup.
How do backups and new phones work?
Private Photo Vault's backup is Cloud Vault, a Premium feature that backs up and syncs your photos and videos, with up to 50GB listed on Google Play. Its FAQ says that if Premium expires and you switch to Basic, your Cloud Backup is deleted. To move to a new phone, the FAQ recommends signing in to Cloud Vault on the new device with your Cloud Vault password at hand.
Velum backs up an already encrypted copy, and the free version includes it. Free, the backup goes to a folder you choose: your phone, a memory card or a USB drive. With Pro, Velum backs up on its own to your Google Drive, in a hidden app space only Velum can read. On a new phone you restore with your pattern or your 9 word recovery phrase. Our guides on backing up private photos and moving private photos to a new phone go through it step by step.
What if you forget your code?
Private Photo Vault recovers your app password through a recovery email you set up when you first use the app. Its FAQ says that without one, passwords cannot be recovered through that process, and that your Cloud Vault password can never be recovered by its team.
Velum uses a 9 word recovery phrase that it shows when you create a vault. It opens the vault if you forget your pattern, and it restores a backup on a new phone. Each extra vault has its own phrase. Write it on paper and keep it somewhere safe. If you would rather use a long code you can remember for other accounts, our passphrase generator makes one in your browser.
What about decoys and being forced to unlock?
Private Photo Vault Premium has a Fake PIN that opens a decoy vault with a separate code, and Break-In Alerts that record someone trying to get into the vault, with photos and location.
Velum Pro lets you add more vaults, each with its own pattern and recovery phrase, and no list of vaults exists anywhere in the app. It adds a duress pattern that opens one vault and quietly removes the keys to every other vault on the phone, which cannot be undone. The disguise shows a Calculator, Notes or Weather icon instead of Velum's, and the calculator really calculates. Velum also blocks screenshots, locks when you leave or lay the phone face down, and has a private camera that saves photos and videos straight into the vault, never to your gallery.
What does each cost?
Private Photo Vault is free to download, and Google Play marks it as containing ads and in-app purchases. Its listing names Album Lock, Break-In Alerts, Fake PIN, Cloud Vault, Space Saver and Ad-Free as Premium features.
Velum's free version has no ads and holds up to 100 photos or files and 10 videos in a vault, with the private camera, folder backup, export and everything that keeps your files safe. Pro comes by month or year with a 7-day free trial, or once for life. It removes the limit and adds more vaults, the duress pattern, the disguise, encrypted notes, slideshows and Google Drive backup. Not sure what to look for in any vault? Our guide on how to choose a photo vault app lists the questions to ask.
Why choose Velum over Private Photo Vault?
- One encryption model for everything. AES-256-GCM with a key from your pattern, covering photos, videos, thumbnails and file names.
- Proof on screen. "What others see" shows the stored file as random noise.
- No account, ever. Nothing about you sits on a server.
- No ads, free or Pro. The free version is a full vault for up to 100 photos or files and 10 videos.
- A free encrypted backup you keep. To a folder, memory card or USB drive, with Google Drive added in Pro.
- A recovery phrase instead of an email. Nine words on paper open your vault.
- A duress pattern on top of decoy vaults and a working calculator disguise in Pro.
- Pay once if you like. Pro by month or year with a 7-day free trial, or once for life.
Comparing other vaults too? See Velum vs Keepsafe and Velum vs Samsung Secure Folder.
Sources
Questions
Does Private Photo Vault encrypt my photos?
Its website says files stored in the app use AES encryption, and its FAQ says AES-256. Its optional Cloud Vault adds another AES-256 layer on your device before upload, with a key from your Cloud Vault password. Velum encrypts every photo, video, thumbnail and file name with AES-256-GCM, using a key derived from your pattern with Argon2id, and shows you the stored file as random noise.
Is Private Photo Vault free?
Private Photo Vault is free to download, and Google Play marks it as containing ads and in-app purchases. Ad-Free, Fake PIN, Break-In Alerts, Album Lock and Cloud Vault are listed as Premium features. Velum's free version has no ads and holds up to 100 photos or files and 10 videos in a vault, with the private camera, backup and export included.
What happens to my backup if I stop paying?
Private Photo Vault's FAQ says that if Premium expires and you switch to Basic, your Cloud Backup is deleted, while photos in the app stay accessible. Velum's free backup goes to a folder you choose, such as your phone, a memory card or a USB drive. That copy is yours, encrypted, and nothing about it depends on a plan.
Can I recover my vault if I forget my code?
Private Photo Vault recovers your app password through a recovery email you set up at first use, and its Cloud Vault password cannot be recovered by its team. Velum has no email or account. When you create a vault, it shows you a 9 word recovery phrase. Write it on paper, and it opens your vault and restores a backup on a new phone.
Does Velum work on iPhone?
No. Velum runs on Android 11 or newer only. It moves to a new Android phone through a backup you restore with your pattern or your 9 word recovery phrase. The free backup goes to a folder, memory card or USB drive, and Pro adds automatic backup to Google Drive, in a hidden app space only Velum can read.
