Velum vs Samsung Secure Folder: Which Should Hide Your Photos?

If you own a Galaxy phone, Samsung already gives you a private space for photos, files and apps: Secure Folder. It is free, protected by Samsung Knox, and more capable than most people realise. Velum, a vault app coming soon to Google Play, takes a narrower approach focused on encrypted files and backups. This comparison is as of October 2026 and uses Samsung's own support pages for every Secure Folder fact.

Velum vs Secure Folder at a glance

Where does Secure Folder win?

It is free, built in and broad. Samsung describes Secure Folder as a protected space for photos, files, apps and other private content, protected by Samsung Knox so only you can open it. You can move pictures and files in from Gallery or My Files with Move to Secure Folder, and add apps with the plus button. Apps added there sit behind the same lock, out of sight with your private files.

It has its own PIN, password or pattern, fingerprint unlock on supported devices, and an auto lock timer. You can hide it from the Apps screen, toggle it from Quick Settings, and rename it or change its icon. For extra protection, enhanced encryption can be turned on, though Samsung notes that apps and their notifications stop working while it is on.

If you have a supported Galaxy and want to hide apps as well as photos, Velum has no answer to that.

What are Secure Folder's limits?

• Samsung only. It is available only on supported Galaxy phones and tablets, and Samsung says it can only be accessed on that device, not from the web or a computer.
• No new backups. Samsung's support page says backing up data is no longer supported for Secure Folder, though you can still restore earlier backups. Smart Switch can transfer it to a new device, but that is a move, not a backup you can fall back on if the phone is lost.
• Recovery depends on setup. Samsung asks you to turn on Reset with Samsung account. Without it, a forgotten passcode means you cannot get back in.
• Local files only. Files saved only to a cloud account cannot be moved in.

How does Velum differ?

Velum is a vault for photos, videos and files, and it encrypts each one itself. Every photo, video, thumbnail and file name is encrypted on the phone with AES-256-GCM using Google's Tink library. The key comes from the pattern you draw, stretched with Argon2id so guessing it is slow. A screen called "What others see" shows any photo next to the same file as stored on the phone: random noise, no name and no type.

Every import is decrypted back and checked against the original before Velum offers to remove it from your gallery. Its private camera saves straight into the vault, screenshots are blocked, and it locks when you leave or lay the phone face down. Our guide on how to hide photos on Android covers Secure Folder alongside the other methods.

How does backup compare?

This is the clearest difference today. With Secure Folder's backup retired, a lost or broken Galaxy can take its Secure Folder contents with it.

Velum backs up an already encrypted copy. Free, it goes to a folder you choose: the 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. You restore on any Android 11 phone with your pattern or your 9 word recovery phrase, Samsung or not.

What about decoys and coercion?

Secure Folder has one space behind one code. Velum Pro lets you add more vaults, each with its own pattern and recovery phrase, so you can open a decoy with ordinary photos in it if you are pressed to show your phone. No list of vaults exists anywhere in the app. A duress pattern opens one vault and quietly removes the keys to every other vault on the phone, which cannot be undone. The Pro disguise shows a working Calculator, Notes or Weather icon instead of Velum's.

Which should you choose?

Use Secure Folder if:

• You have a supported Galaxy phone and want something free and built in.
• You want to hide apps, not only files.
• You plan to move phones with Smart Switch and do not need separate backups.

Choose Velum if:

• You want encrypted backups you can restore after losing the phone.
• You want a recovery phrase that needs no account.
• You want decoy vaults, a duress pattern or a disguise.
• You do not have a Samsung phone, or might switch brands.

Not on Samsung? See Velum vs Google Photos Locked Folder. Comparing vault apps? See Velum vs Keepsafe. Samsung's battery management can also close apps in the background, which our guide to stopping Samsung from killing apps explains, and if hiding photos is part of a storage clear-out, see how to free up storage on Android.

Sources

• Samsung US: Use the Secure Folder on your Galaxy phone or tablet
• Samsung Canada: Use Secure Folder on your Samsung Galaxy