Which photo vault app takes a picture of an intruder on iPhone?

Why this page exists

People ask which vault app takes a picture of an intruder, and the search results are thin. When we searched that question, the results were App Store listings and an old list article. So this page explains the feature in plain terms, how York Vault does it, and how other apps charge for it.

Inside the app, York Vault does not use words like intruder or break-in. The person at the keypad is often family. The log is called attempts, and its messages state facts: a time, a count and a lock type.

What York Vault does

All of these are on the Free plan, on iPhone and Android:

• A photo after a wrong code. The front camera takes a photo with no preview and no shutter sound. By default this happens on every wrong code. You can change it to every 2nd or 3rd wrong code.

• A log of attempts. Each entry shows the time, the number of wrong codes in that try, the lock type, and the wrong code that was typed. You can turn off the record of the typed code. You can delete one entry or all of them.

• A banner after you open your library. For example: “3 wrong codes since your last visit”, with a link to the entries. It shows once, then clears.

• An alert on your other devices. Within about 1 minute, your other devices with York Vault get a neutral notice, such as “York Vault: activity on iPhone at 2:14 PM”. The text says nothing about photos or codes. You can also turn on a neutral notice on the same iPhone.

• A location for each entry. This is off by default. When you turn it on, each entry shows where the try happened, as coordinates and a map. If York Vault has no location access, the setting says so and does not pretend to work.

• A test run during setup. Type a wrong code, then the right one, and see the entry it made. Test entries are marked as tests.

• A copy in Photos, if you want one. This is off by default. It saves a copy of each photo to Photos, so a person who deletes York Vault still leaves the photo in iCloud Photos. The setting reminds you that Photos is not private.

How it works, step by step

1. Someone types a wrong code on the York Vault lock screen.
2. The front camera takes a photo within 1 second.
3. York Vault encrypts the photo and saves it in your main library.
4. Your other devices with York Vault get a neutral alert.
5. You open your library with the right code.
6. A banner shows the count. Tap it to see each entry with its photo.

Where attempts never show

Attempts live only in your main library. They never appear in the cover library. A person who opens the cover library sees no banner, no count and no photo, so they learn nothing about other libraries. An erase code also records no entry.

What iOS shows during the photo

Apple says that “A green indicator means either the camera only or the camera and microphone are being used by an app on your iPhone.” So while the photo is taken, a green dot appears in the status bar. York Vault cannot hide it, and it does not try. The camera permission text in York Vault also says that the camera takes these photos.

How other apps do it

App	Wrong-code photo	Cost to see it	Where we read it
Private Photo Vault	“Break-in Report: Photo + GPS”	A 7-day trial, then: “To continue using this feature, you must buy the upgrade.”	App Store listing and app text
Keepsafe	Photo and time, taken on the free plan	Paid to view: “Intruder alerts are a Premium feature, upgrade to view your alerts.”	App text
LockMyPix	“Capture intruders trying to open your vault with a selfie.”	Premium	App Store listing and app text
SPV	Photo and time	Count free, details paid: “Upgrade to Premium for details of unauthorized logins”	App text
NQ Vault	Photo, wrong passcode and a map	Premium. The map cannot work in the current build, because the app does not ask for location.	App package
Calculator Lock	“Snap Intruder Capture selfie photos”	Not stated	App Store listing
Vaultaire	None. A wait after wrong tries only.	Not offered	App package
Privault	None found	Not offered	App package

We read each App Store package in September 2026 and checked the listings on 2026-10-02.

The problem with paid photos

When an app captures the photo for free but charges to see it, the count becomes a sales tool. In the 836 App Store reviews we studied, 6 users complained about this. One Keepsafe user paid to view alerts and wrote: “2 of the recent notifications were from that same night. And I myself did not have a failed login.” A Calculator Lock user wrote that the app “Doesn’t save the intruder selfie”.

York Vault has one rule here. It never shows a count behind a paywall, and it never shows a count it cannot back with a photo or a log entry.

Apple’s Hidden album keeps no log

Apple’s Hidden album opens with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. Apple’s support page describes no record of who opened it and no photo after a failed try. If you want to know about wrong codes, you need an app that keeps its own log. See what the Hidden album does.

To make wrong codes rarer, pick a strong code in lock options. To leave the app fast when someone walks up, see quick exit. To compare whole apps, read the best photo vault apps for iPhone.