How to Move Hidden Photos to a New Android Phone Without Losing Any

A new phone is exciting right up to the moment you realise your hidden photos did not come with it. Most phone-to-phone copies skip private folders on purpose, because those folders are locked with a key that lives on the old phone. The fix is simple once you know which tool you used, and it only goes wrong when the old phone is reset too early.

What happens to hidden photos when you switch phones?

Each hiding tool handles a move differently. Here is the short version.

The rule behind every row: do not reset, trade in or sell the old phone until you have opened every hidden photo on the new one.

How do you transfer Locked Folder photos to a new phone?

It depends on one switch in Google Photos settings. Google says that with Locked Folder backup off, items are stored only on that device and are not included in cable or cloud transfers between phones.

If Locked Folder backup is on

1. On the old phone, open Google Photos, tap your profile picture and go to Photos settings > Backup > Back up Locked Folder. Unlock it and check the switch is on.
2. Give it time to finish uploading on Wi-Fi.
3. On the new phone, set a screen lock, sign in to Google Photos with the same account and open Collections > Locked. The Locked Folder uses the new phone's screen lock.

If Locked Folder backup is off

You have two choices. Turn backup on with the steps above and accept a copy in your Google account, or keep it local:

1. On the old phone, open Locked Folder and move the items out to the normal gallery.
2. Copy them to the new phone with a cable, a memory card or your usual transfer tool.
3. On the new phone, move them into Locked Folder again.
4. Delete the plain copies on both phones, and empty the gallery trash.

How do you move Samsung Secure Folder to a new phone?

Samsung says data backup is no longer available for Secure Folder, and on Android 16 with One UI 8 or newer the old restore option is gone as well. Smart Switch is the supported way to move it.

1. Put both Galaxy phones next to each other, or connect them with a USB cable.
2. On the new phone, open Smart Switch and tap Receive on this phone. On the old phone, tap Send from this phone, then Allow.
3. On the new phone, tap the arrow next to Apps and select Secure Folder. You may be asked for your Secure Folder lock.
4. Tap Transfer, wait for it to finish, then tap Close.
5. Open Secure Folder on the new phone and look through your photos before you touch the old one.

Secure Folder only moves this way to another Galaxy phone. If you are leaving Samsung, move the photos out of Secure Folder first, then hide them again on the new phone. Our Velum vs Samsung Secure Folder comparison covers what changes if you pick a vault that is not tied to one brand.

How do you move Files by Google Safe folder photos?

Safe folder is encrypted with a key on the phone, and it has no Google Drive backup. Google warns against copying encrypted Safe folder files from an old phone to a new one, or plugging in a memory card that holds another phone's Safe folder files.

1. On the old phone, open Files by Google, scroll to Collections and tap Safe folder.
2. Tap More next to a file and choose Move out of Safe folder. Stay in Safe folder until the move finishes, or it is cancelled.
3. Copy the files to the new phone.
4. On the new phone, set up Safe folder and move them back in with More > Move to Safe folder.
5. Delete the plain copies left over on both phones.

There is more on how it compares in Velum vs Files by Google Safe folder.

What about Android Private space?

Google says private space data is not part of your device backup, and restoring a backup does not bring private space back. Apps inside it that sync to their own cloud can restore after you sign in again. Anything stored only inside the space stays on the old phone, so move it out before you switch.

How do you move a Velum vault to a new phone?

Velum keeps its vault out of Android's device backup, so a phone-to-phone copy does not carry it. That is deliberate. The vault moves through its own backup, which is encrypted before it leaves the phone, so the memory card, USB drive or Drive only ever holds random-looking blocks. You can read how that encryption works in how Velum encrypts a photo.

On the old phone

1. Open Velum and go to Settings > Backup.
2. Pick where the backup goes. Free: Choose a folder and pick a memory card or USB drive. With Pro: Back up to Google Drive, which keeps the copy in a hidden app space only Velum can read.
3. Tap Back up now and wait until it shows the time of the last backup.

A folder on the phone itself will not help you here, because it goes with the phone. For a move, choose the card, the drive or Drive.

On the new phone

1. Install Velum and tap I have a Velum backup.
2. Choose From Google Drive, or plug in the card or drive and pick the folder that holds your Velum backup. Restoring from Drive does not need Pro.
3. Draw the pattern of the vault you want back, or type its 9 word recovery phrase. If you have more than one vault, each opens with its own pattern.
4. Open a few photos and videos to check them before you reset the old phone.

If you turned off Restore with pattern for a vault, only its recovery phrase opens it on the new phone. Have the phrase written down before you start. Velum has no account, so nobody can reset it for you.

What do you lose if you reset the old phone first?

This is the part people learn the hard way. A factory reset removes the key that unlocks most private folders, and without that key the files are gone, even if a copy of the encrypted files survives somewhere.

• Locked Folder without backup: Google says you lose items you have not backed up if you uninstall Photos, clear its data, or the phone is reset, lost or damaged.
• Files by Google Safe folder: everything inside is lost. There is no Drive backup to fall back on.
• Secure Folder: if Smart Switch did not move it first, and you are on One UI 8 or newer, there is no backup to restore.
• Private space: anything that lived only inside it is gone.
• Velum: a vault with no backup off the phone is gone. With a backup on a card, a drive or Drive, plus your pattern or phrase, it comes back in full.

If you have already reset the phone, check Google Photos, your gallery's trash and any computer backups for plain copies you made earlier.

How do you keep this from happening next time?

Set up a backup on the day you start hiding photos. Switching phones is then just a restore. Our guide on how to back up private photos walks through a simple plan that keeps the copies private. If you are still deciding where to hide things on the new phone, start with how to hide photos on Android or how to choose a photo vault app.

Sources

• Google Photos Help: Hide sensitive photos and videos in Locked Folders
• Samsung: Cannot back up Secure Folder on Galaxy phone or tablet
• Files by Google Help: Protect your files with Safe folder
• Android Help: Hide sensitive apps with private space