Private Vault

PrivateVault – Offline Encrypted File Vault & Manager

PrivateVault protects photos, videos, audio, PDFs, documents, archives, notes, and other sensitive files in a local encrypted vault. It works without an account, cloud service, ads, analytics, telemetry, or network access permission.

Unlike a basic file-hiding app, PrivateVault encrypts vault content and authenticated metadata on-device. Files remain in app-private storage, outside normal galleries, media scanners, and file-manager browsing.

Strong Password-Based Vault Protection

● AES-256-GCM: protects confidentiality and integrity; altered ciphertext fails authentication
● PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256: the current Free vault uses 500,000+ iterations, a fresh random 32-byte salt, and a 256-bit derived key
● Strict profiles: supported KDF parameters are versioned and allowlisted
● Legacy compatibility: supported 310,000+ iteration PBKDF2 vault credentials remain usable
● Vault passwords are not stored as plaintext or recoverable by PrivateVault
● Supports strong passwords of 8–127 characters, although minimum password length recommended is 15

Authenticated Local Storage

● PVL2 encrypted blobs: files are streamed in independently authenticated chunks with fresh random nonces and authenticated structural data
● PVMD metadata: file records, folders, active blob references, and repository state use a versioned authenticated format
● Encrypted local activity logs record supported vault actions

Encrypted File Manager

Import files and folders, search and sort content, use thumbnails and list views, select multiple items, export when needed, change the vault password, and remove items from the vault. Supported long operations provide foreground progress and cancellation controls.

Private Capture & Image Viewing

Capture photos, video, and audio from the app and store the results in the encrypted vault. Free includes private image viewing. Broader media, document, archive, and editing tools are available in PrivateVault PRO.

Biometric & Local Access Controls

Unlock with the vault password or supported secure biometrics through Android Keystore integration. Auto-lock, brute-force attempt limiting, vault reset, and local activity logs help control access without sending data to a server.

Argon2id Portable Backups

● Newer backups uses Argon2id v1.3 with 64 MiB memory, 3 passes, parallelism 4, a fresh random 32-byte salt, and a 256-bit derived key
● Backup headers, manifest data, and payloads are authenticated before restore activation
● Supported password-based backups can be restored during vault creation; advanced restore controls through settings page are a PRO feature

Encrypted File Sharing

Password-protected PPSH shared files use Argon2id and authenticated encryption independently of the Free vault KDF. Supported shared images can be opened after password authentication; other embedded formats remain subject to Free viewing limits.

Upgrade to Pv PRO (PrivateVault PRO)

PRO upgrade adds an Argon2id-protected live vault with a separate recovery code requirement, 2FA Unlock, Panic Gesture Lock, Intruder Selfie, advanced organization, broader file viewing, editing and scanning tools, Vault Safety Check, more themes, and PRO recovery-backup workflows.

PrivateVault created password-only backups versions are compatible with PRO. Current Pv PRO backups require both the vault password and saved recovery code, so they must be restored in Pv PRO.

Important Security Boundary

Vault content is encrypted at rest. Plaintext intentionally exported, shared, or opened in another app is outside the vault and no longer protected by PrivateVault encryption. Forgotten vault or backup passwords cannot be recovered. Security also depends on password strength, device integrity, Android security, and control of exported files.