How to lock your Signal messaging app with a passcode and keep all of your private conversations and files secure

You can lock your Signal app so that anyone trying to open it will have to enter a passcode or other type of verification.
To lock Signal, open its in-app settings and select "Screen Lock."
Signal will use the same security method and passcode that your phone uses.
Locking the Signal app is an important way to keep your private conversations private.
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Signal is a popular app for journalists, government officials, and anyone who needs to have private conversations or transmit documents securely. This is because it's built with end-to-end encryption, which makes sure no one can listen into your conversations.

While the service is already extremely secure, its encryption means nothing if someone can just pick up your phone and open the app.

That's why Signal allows you to lock the app, requiring anyone who opens it (yourself included) to verify their identity before they're shown any messages.

Here's how to lock Signal, and keep your conversations safe.

How to lock your Signal messaging app

1. Start the Signal app.

2. Tap your account icon at the top-left of the screen and tap "Privacy."

how to lock signal 1 — Signal's Settings menu appears when you tap your account icon at the top left of the screen.
Dave Johnson/Business Insider

3. Find "Screen Lock" and turn it on by swiping its button to the right. On the iPhone, it'll be halfway down the page in the "Screen Lock" section, but on Android it'll be at the top of the page in the "App access" section.

You can also set up your "Screen Lock Timeout" settings, which let you unlock Signal once, then have the ability to open it without a passcode for a short time afterward.