DocuLock Early access

Guides

In short. Use these guides to set up and use DocuLock. Need more help? Write to support@doculock.app.

Set up your vault

Install DocuLock and sign in with your Apple ID. The app makes your keys on the phone. Then it shows your recovery phrase one time.

Keep your recovery phrase safe

  1. Write the phrase on paper. Do not take a screenshot.
  2. Keep the paper in a safe place.
  3. Do not send the phrase to anyone. DocuLock staff never ask for it.

Warning: We cannot reset the phrase. If you lose the phrase and all your phones, we cannot recover your documents.

Add documents and photos

Your phone reads the text in a scan. You can then search for a word in the document. The app does not send the pictures to a service for reading.

Remove the originals from your Photos app

When you import into an album, the app asks: Remove the originals from your Photos app? They are deleted there and stay here, encrypted. Choose yes to delete the originals from your Photos app. iOS keeps deleted photos in Recently Deleted for a time. To remove them at once, open the Photos app, go to Recently Deleted, and delete them there also.

Lock a folder with a PIN

  1. Open the folder.
  2. Choose Set a PIN.
  3. Enter a PIN of 6 to 12 digits. Enter it again.
  4. If you want, turn on Face ID as a second check. Face ID is off until you turn it on.

The folder locks when the app goes to the background. A PIN makes the key that seals the folder. We cannot reset a PIN. A password manager can save the PIN for you.

After four wrong PINs, the app makes you wait before the next try. The wait is 30 seconds, then 1 minute, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, and then 1 hour for each wrong PIN. The app does not erase anything. A long PIN is safer, because the wait does not stop a person who tries PINs on a copy of the data somewhere else.

Lock one document

You can lock a single document. To open it, use Face ID or your passcode. A locked document does not show in lists, in search, or in notices.

Use the Photos tab

The Photos tab is a separate space. It has its own PIN. The app also checks your Apple ID before it opens Photos. One key from the PIN seals all your photos, your videos, and your album list.

Share a link

  1. Open a document and choose Share securely.
  2. Set Link works for: from one hour to a date you pick.
  3. Set how many times the link can be opened. The default is five. You can choose a different number, or no limit.
  4. Choose if the recipient can Save a copy.
  5. Turn on Access code. The app makes a code, for example 5FY-D4T.
  6. Choose Create link.

Send the link and the code by different routes. The recipient needs both. The recipient opens the link in a browser. The browser decrypts the document on the recipient's device.

To revoke a link, open the list of shared links and choose Revoke. The link stops at once. If you delete the document, its links stop also.

Limits: A link cannot stop a person from taking a photograph of their screen. If you allow a saved copy, the recipient keeps that copy.

Add or remove a phone

To add a phone: Install DocuLock on the new phone. Choose Add this phone from another phone, and scan the code that your first phone shows. You need your recovery phrase and your Apple ID. The phrase alone is not sufficient.

To remove a phone: Open Settings and choose Remove this phone. The app warns you if it is your only phone.

Sign out

Open Settings and choose Sign out. The app locks everything on the phone. The app does not contact Apple. To sign in again, use the same Apple ID. Your encrypted vault stays on the service.

Delete your vault

  1. Open Settings and choose Delete vault.
  2. Confirm with your Apple ID.
  3. Type DELETE.

The service removes your encrypted documents, your shared links, your devices, and the vault. Your phone clears its own copy and keys. You cannot undo this. We cannot bring anything back. Your Apple ID can then start a new, empty vault.

If you no longer have a phone with access, write to support@doculock.app.