Simple iPhone hack can hide any apps from home screen for privacy

The release of the new iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max is an exciting time for fans of Apple phones and modern technology (Photo: Apple)The release of the new iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max is an exciting time for fans of Apple phones and modern technology (Photo: Apple)
The release of the new iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max is an exciting time for fans of Apple phones and modern technology (Photo: Apple)

iPhone users have the ability to hide almost any app from the homescreen of their phone for added privacy.

The genius system means people can keep apps, such as dating or banking apps, out of view so other people won’t stumble upon it when using their phone.

How does it work?

TikTok creator @markdx explained the simple hack to allow iPhone users to keep any sensitive apps hidden from view.

First of all, users need to hide home screen pages and thanks to the App Library, having a home screen packed full of apps is no longer necessary.

A new Apple feature added in iOS 14 - which is still available in iOS 15 - allows users to hide apps, or even entire pages of apps, from the home screen without having to delete them.

To check you’re running the right iOS version, go to ‘Settings’ > ‘General’ > ‘Software Update’.

To hide your home screen page, simply put all the apps you want to hide onto a home screen page and hold your finger down on the home screen until the app icons start to wiggle.

Then tap on the bubble with dots inside at the bottom of the screen. This will bring up a homescreen view allowing you to hide individual pages by unticking them.

When you are finished, simple tap ‘done’ in the right-hand corner.

These pages are not gone forever and will stay preserved until you want to make them visible again.

How to hide apps from Siri

Swiping down on the home screen on an iPhone will allow an app to appear, or you can search for an app using voice or text.

However, it is possible to turn these features off for individual apps.

To do so, go into ‘Settings’ and select ‘Siri & Search’, then scroll down to select the app you wish to hide.

Click on the setting and then turn off the following features:

- show app in search- show content in search- show on home screen- suggest app- suggestion notifications

After turning these features off Siri will not be able to suggest that app, even if you have searched for it specifically.

Although it is still possible to search for the app via the App Library as this is not a moveable feature.

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