Coming soon to theApp Store

Add things to a vault

Free

On this page

You can put things into a vault from inside it, while you scan, or from any document on Home. Anything you add from inside a vault is encrypted as it’s saved and never passes through Home.

Everything goes into the vault that’s open, or the one your pattern opens. Draw the right pattern first.

What it is

Inside a vault, the bar at the bottom has two buttons:

  • Camera: the private camera, for photos and videos straight into the vault. See The private camera.
  • +: a menu with
    • Capture: Scan document, ID card, Board or screen, Photo or video
    • Create: Secure note
    • Import: Move from Photos, From Files, Move from the main screen…

From outside a vault there are three more ways in: Save to a vault on a new scan, Move to a vault on a document, and Save to Paperwise → A private vault… on a link someone shared with you.

The first thing in a new vault

A new pattern opens a new, empty vault that exists only in memory. The first thing you save in it (or the first setting you change) asks to keep it:

  1. This pattern starts a new vault. “Draw this vault’s pattern again.” This catches a mistyped pattern before anything is saved under it.
  2. Face ID.
  3. Can this vault be recovered? Choose Recoverable (recommended: on a new iPhone, your vaults key and this pattern bring it back) or This iPhone only (it can never be recovered from anywhere). A recoverable vault needs a pattern of at least 8 dots; if yours is shorter, you draw a longer one here.
  4. Tap Save this vault. Then what you were adding is saved.

You can make one new vault a day. A second vault needs Pro. See More vaults.

Step by step

Scan a document into a vault

  1. Open the vault and tap + → Scan document (or ID card, or Board or screen).
  2. Scan as usual. The scan is saved straight into this vault.

While you scan into a vault, screenshots are blocked (best effort), and the pages exist only in that scan session.

Send a new scan to a vault from Home

  1. Tap Scan in the bottom bar and scan your pages.
  2. On the review screen, turn on Save to a vault (it’s off by default).
  3. Save. Face ID and the pad open; draw the pattern of the vault you want. The scan goes straight in.

If no vault opens, the scan isn’t saved anywhere yet: “No vault was opened. Your scan wasn’t saved anywhere yet.” It stays on the review screen so you can try again.

Import files

  1. In the vault, tap + → From Files.
  2. Pick one or more files. They’re encrypted into the vault as they’re imported.
  3. Paperwise then offers Delete the original? (or Delete the N originals?). Keep is the default. See Where copies of your files can remain.

A vault keeps files up to 200 MB each.

Write a secure note

Tap + → Secure note. The note opens straight away and is saved in the vault as you write.

Move photos and videos from Photos

Tap + → Move from Photos. Paperwise then offers to delete the originals. Read Move photos out of Photos first.

Move documents from Home

  1. In the vault, tap + → Move from the main screen….
  2. “Choose what to move. It’s encrypted in this vault and leaves the main screen, search and AI.” Tick the items.
  3. Tap Move.

Move a document you’re looking at

  1. Open the document on Home.
  2. Tap More → Move to a vault. If the document shows “This looks like an ID. Move it to a vault?”, you can tap Move to a vault there instead.
  3. Face ID and the pad open. Draw the pattern of the vault you want.

Paperwise tells you where to find it: “Moved to a vault. Open it from the lock on Home, with the same pattern.” To move several at once, tap Select, choose the documents, then More → Hide.

When someone sends you a Paperwise share link and you open it in the app, tap Save to Paperwise and choose A private vault…. The pad opens first.

Free and Pro

Everything on this page is free. A second vault needs Pro.

Privacy

  • Nothing is saved on Home first. Scans, files, photos and notes added from inside a vault, and scans saved with Save to a vault, are encrypted as they’re saved. If saving fails, nothing is written; the item never falls back to Home.
  • Text on scans in a vault is recognised on the iPhone and kept only inside the item’s encrypted record. It’s never added to Home’s search.
  • Move to a vault and Move from the main screen… start from something that was on Home. Paperwise removes its Home copy and its words from search at once. If the document was synced, its earlier copy can stay in your Sync & Backup history for up to 30 days, encrypted with your account key. To keep a new scan from ever being on Home, use Save to a vault instead.
  • A document typed as an ID, medical, bank or tax paper keeps its type in the vault. If you move it back out, it’s protected again on Home.

Tips

  • Starting a scan from inside a vault is the surest way to keep it off Home.
  • Inside a vault, the chips All, Documents, Photos and Notes filter what you see. Photos and videos can go into albums under Photos.
  • To take something back out, open it and tap More → Move to the main screen. It returns to Home, under Home’s key, which isn’t behind Face ID.

What if…

What if I don’t see Save to a vault on the review screen?

It shows only for new scans. When you edit pages of an existing document, use More → Move to a vault on the document instead.

What if it says “You can make one new vault a day”?

You already made a vault in the last 24 hours. Add the item to an existing vault, or try again after the time shown.

What if a file wasn’t added?

The vault may have locked during the import, the iPhone may be short of space, or the file is over 200 MB. Open the vault and try again.

Still stuck? Write to support@paperwise.app.