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How to Lock Private ChatGPT Chats with a PIN

Step-by-step guide to locking ChatGPT conversations with a 4-digit PIN or biometrics so sensitive chats stay hidden from history and search.

October 21, 2026 Yum News

OpenAI rolled out Locked Chats for ChatGPT on October 20, 2026. The feature lets you hide selected conversations from regular history, pinned chats, and search while still keeping them available in your account.

You unlock them with a four-digit account PIN. On supported phones you can also use Face ID, Touch ID, or your device unlock method. Locked chats have their own separate memory that does not affect regular chats.

This guide shows exactly how to set it up, lock an existing chat, start a new locked conversation, and avoid the one mistake that permanently deletes everything.

What Locked Chats Actually Do

Locked chats move a conversation out of your normal sidebar and search results. The chat itself stays saved. You can return to it anytime after authenticating.

This differs from Temporary Chats, which disappear from history once the session ends. Locked chats remain available but protected. Retention and model-improvement settings stay unchanged.

The feature is rolling out gradually to Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu users on web, iOS, Android, and the new ChatGPT desktop apps for macOS and Windows.

Assorted padlocks hanging from a metal structure

Create Your Account PIN

ChatGPT prompts you to create a PIN the first time you lock a chat or open the Locked chats area.

Select Create a PIN when the prompt appears.
Enter a 4-digit code.
Enter the same code again to confirm.

You can later enable biometric unlock in the Account PIN settings on supported devices. The same PIN works across all devices signed into your account. Device unlock methods are set per device.

Warning: If you forget the PIN and reset it, OpenAI permanently deletes every locked chat, associated files, and memory stored only in those chats. Support cannot recover them. Choose a PIN you can remember or store it securely.

Lock an Existing Conversation

First-time users must lock an existing chat before they can start new ones inside the locked area.

Open the conversation you want to protect.
Tap or click the more options menu (•••).
Select Lock chat.
Confirm by selecting Lock chat again.
Create or enter your PIN if prompted.

The chat disappears from regular history, pinned lists, and search. It now appears under Projects > Locked chats.

Start a New Locked Chat

After your PIN is set:

Select Projects.
Select Locked chats.
Enter your PIN or use supported device authentication.
Type a message to begin the new conversation.

When you finish, choose Lock now to end access and hide the section again. On web, refreshing the page or closing the tab also ends the unlocked session. On mobile, access typically relocks after about a minute in the background.

Open and Manage Locked Chats

To reopen:

Go to Projects > Locked chats.
Authenticate with your PIN or device method.
Select the chat.

After authentication, titles may appear temporarily in the sidebar under Locked chats. Access ends when you choose Lock now, refresh, close the tab, or leave the app in the background on mobile.

To permanently return a chat to regular history, open it, choose the more options menu, and select Unlock chat (or Unlock on iOS). Confirm. The chat returns to normal history. If it originated in a Project, it does not automatically move back there.

Close-up of a padlock securing a metal gate

What Locked Chats Do Not Cover

The feature is unavailable for:

Temporary chats
Archived chats
Group chats
Chats created from a shared link
Chats with scheduled tasks
Chats containing meeting recordings
Codex conversations

Locked chats do not provide end-to-end encryption. They hide content from casual viewing on a shared device or screen, but OpenAI still processes them under existing retention and training rules.

Memory works separately. New messages in locked chats update only the locked-section memory. They do not update the memory used in your regular chats.

Tips for Everyday Use

Use Locked Chats for sensitive personal planning, medical questions, or anything you do not want visible if someone else opens your ChatGPT session. Combine it with Temporary Chat when you need a conversation that never enters history at all.

If you share a device, enable biometric unlock so you do not have to type the PIN every time. Still keep the PIN written down somewhere safe, because a reset deletes the locked content.

For deeper research workflows that also benefit from privacy controls, see our guide on using Gemini Deep Research for cited reports.

Conclusion

Locked Chats give ChatGPT users a practical way to keep selected conversations out of regular view without deleting them. Set a memorable PIN, lock the chats you care about, and remember that resetting the PIN is permanent. The feature is still rolling out, so check the more options menu if you do not see Lock chat yet.