How to Lock Signal with Face ID or Touch ID on iPhone
Want to add some extra on-device security to Signal? You can protect your conversations in Signal with a passcode lock feature, allowing you to require face ID or Touch ID to access Signal conversations.
Signal has rapidly grown to be one of the most critically acclaimed messaging services due to it’s privacy and security features. Moreover, several users have been switching to this platform recently due to privacy concerns with other messaging apps. If you’re new to the app, you may not be aware of all the privacy features that you can take advantage of, like disappearing messages, Screen Lock, and more . No matter how secure Signal is, nothing is stopping someone from snooping through your iPhone when it’s unlocked though, whether it’s friends, relatives, family, or whoever else picks up your unlocked iPhone.
The developers have apparently thought this through since the app offers a Screen Lock feature to lock the app after a set duration of inactivity.
Here, we’ll be taking a look at exactly how you can lock Signal messenger with Face ID or Touch ID on your iPhone.
How to Use Screen Lock with Signal on iPhone
This feature has been around for quite a while, so it’s not mandatory to have the latest version of the app installed. Depending on the iPhone model you’re using, you will be limited to either Touch ID or Face ID.
- Opening the Signal app will take you directly to your chat list. Here, tap on your profile icon located at the top-left corner of your screen.
- In this menu, select “Privacy” to access your privacy-related settings.
- Scroll down in the privacy section and you’ll find the Screen Lock feature. Use the toggle to turn it on and access more options.
- Turning Screen Lock on will give you access to the Screen Lock timeout setting which is set to 15 minutes by default. Tap on it to change the duration.
- Now, decide how long it should take for the app’s Screen Lock feature to kick in.
- Once you’re done, you may also want to turn on the feature called “Screen Security” which basically prevents Signal from displaying previews in the app switcher.
That’s pretty much all you need to do to keep your Signal chats completely hidden even when your iPhone is unlocked.
Although we were focusing on the iOS version of the Signal app, you can follow the above steps to set up Screen Lock on your iPad too and unlock it with Face ID or Touch ID depending on the model you own.
If Face ID or Touch ID fails to authenticate and unlock the app, you will be prompted to type in the passcode that you use to unlock your iPhone or iPad. This is a much better solution than using a separate passcode specifically for the app.
It’s important to keep in mind that people will still be able to read your messages from notifications if you have them turned on. This applies to notifications that show up on your device’s lock screen too. If this is something that concerns you, go to Settings -> Notifications -> Signal on your iPhone or iPad and disable “Show Previews”. You can learn more about disabling Signal message previews here.
WhatsApp offers an identical Screen Lock feature that lets you use Face ID or Touch ID to securely unlock your conversations. This is available on Telegram as well, but unlike Signal and WhatsApp, you’ll be prompted to create a passcode specifically for the app as a backup authentication measure.
Hopefully, you were able to learn how to completely prevent unauthorized access to your Signal chats. What’s your take on the other unique privacy-oriented features that Signal has to offer? If you’ve used other messaging apps, how does Signal fare against the competition? Let us know your valuable opinions and share your experiences in the comments section down below.