Guides / Someone knows my passcode

Someone knows my passcode: what can I do?

Updated 3 November 2026 · By the FirstHour team

Short answerChange it, then cancel the old one with Expire Previous Passcode, and check nobody added their own face or fingerprint. A passcode that someone else knows can open your photos, and your Hidden album too. First read the safety note: a change can be noticed by the person who knew it.

Safety note, before you change anything

Apple's own guide warns that changes to your access may be noticed by other people. If the old passcode suddenly stops working for someone who is used to opening your iPhone, they may notice. If you're afraid of that person, or think they could react badly, talk first to a local support service or the police, and make a plan before you change anything. Apple's Get safe guide points to advocacy organizations for harassment, domestic violence and stalking, and says to consider your safety before making changes. If it's a thief, not someone you know, start here instead.

If it's safe to change it

  1. Change the passcode. Open Settings, then Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode), and enter your passcode. Tap Change Passcode and enter your current one. Tap Passcode Options to choose a longer format, such as a custom alphanumeric code. Apple lists four-digit and six-digit numeric, custom numeric and custom alphanumeric. Four digits is the weakest.
  2. Tap Review Access, if it appears. Apple says it shows settings that may allow ongoing access to your data even after the change.
  3. Cancel the old passcode. Apple says that after you change it, your old passcode can reset your new one for 72 hours, in case you forget. To stop that, go back to Settings, then Face ID & Passcode, and tap Expire Previous Passcode.
  4. Check for extra faces and fingerprints. With Face ID, Settings, then Face ID & Passcode, then Reset Face ID removes an alternate appearance someone may have added, and you set it up again. With Touch ID, look for a fingerprint you don't recognize.
  5. Check your devices. Open Settings, tap your name and look at the devices listed. Apple says to remove any you don't recognize.
  6. Run Safety Check. Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Safety Check, lets you review what you share and update your passcode, Face ID or Touch ID, and Apple Account password. It also has a Quick Exit button.

Your passcode isn't your Apple Account password, Apple says. If the person may know both, change the Apple Account password too. Safety Check offers that.

Add a stronger layer

Apple's Stolen Device Protection asks for Face ID or Touch ID, with no passcode fallback, before sensitive actions. It's mainly for away from familiar places such as home or work, where the passcode still works as usual. But you can choose Always: go to Settings, then Face ID & Passcode, then Stolen Device Protection, and set Require Security Delay to Always. Changing your Apple Account password or passcode then needs your face or fingerprint and a security delay of about an hour, and that applies to you too. It needs iOS 17.3 or later and Find My on. Apple says to turn it on before you need it.

Also, set a short Auto-Lock time (search for Auto-Lock in Settings), and cover the screen when you type your passcode.

How FirstHour helps

The Vault has its own pattern or PIN, separate from your passcode, so knowing the passcode isn't enough to open it. A well-chosen pattern can be much harder to guess than a 6-digit PIN, but someone who watches you draw it can copy it. Don't draw it where the person can see.

FirstHour's own app lock opens with your iPhone passcode, so it won't stop someone who knows it. It can't change your passcode or accounts, can't tell you whether anyone has looked, and doesn't protect pictures you leave in Photos, including the Hidden album. Here's what it can't protect against. Here are signs to look for.

Questions

Is the Hidden album safe if someone knows my passcode?

No. Apple says the Hidden collection opens with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.

It's my partner who knows it. Is that different?

The steps are the same, and so is the safety note. See a partner who knows your passcode.

I forgot my new passcode. What now?

Within 72 hours your old one can still reset it, unless you expired it. After that, Apple's page on resetting your iPhone and passcode says to try Passcode Reset first, and that its last-resort reset using a computer wipes the iPhone's data. Write the new one down somewhere private.

Sources

All guides