A browser is not a VPN. AES-256 on a file does not hide your IP address from sites you visit or from your network operator. Tracking protection is list-based and not absolute. Private Browser Incognito is rated 17+ for unrestricted web access and is intended for adults. We name the cipher. We do not call it military grade. The vault is optional Stealth Suite.
Encryption copy on the internet is mostly adjectives. Military grade, bank grade, unbreakable. Those words do not describe a product. AES-256 does. It is the name of a standard cipher. Private Browser Incognito uses it for the download vault. This page says what that means on an iPhone, what it does not mean on a network, and what happens if you lose the number that turns into the key.
The vault is a sealed store inside the app. Files never appear in Photos or Files. There is no plain copy on disk. The store is excluded from backups. There is no cloud folder on a server we operate. The rest of the browser is still a forgetful session with no history file. Cipher talk does not replace that architecture. If you want the vault as a product, start with An Encrypted Download Vault on iPhone.
What the name actually refers to
AES is a block cipher. 256 is the key length in bits. People who design protocols use it because it is specified, reviewed, and widely implemented, not because the letters sound serious. We use that name because it is accurate. We do not dress it up.
On disk, a vault file is ciphertext. A file manager that is not this app does not get a preview of the original bytes, because those bytes are not sitting next to the sealed container as a spare copy. That is the “no plain copy on disk” rule. It is a storage rule. It is not a claim that nobody can ever compute anything. It is a claim about what this app writes.
Encryption at rest is also not HTTPS. HTTPS-Only Mode, which is free and on by default, is about the connection to a site. The vault is about the file after the transfer. Mixing those layers is how marketing turns a download into a magic cloak. Keep them apart. The connection can still reveal a host. The sealed file can still sit only on this phone.
The passcode is the key
App Lock with a six-digit passcode and Face ID is free in the shipping default. The passcode is never stored. It becomes the key. Face ID is convenience for opening the app. It does not replace the fact that a forgotten code cannot be recovered.
If you forget the passcode, data sealed under it is permanently inaccessible, by you or by us. There is no reset email, because there is no account. We cannot hash a number we never kept and then email you a new one. That sentence is the cost of a key that is not sitting in a database. Read it before you pick a code you will not remember. The dedicated version of this warning is If You Forget the Passcode There Is No Recovery.
A six-digit code is not a 256-bit random string you type with your thumbs. The product still uses AES-256 for the sealed files. The human-memorable secret is the passcode you chose. Treat that with the seriousness of a key, not the casualness of a PIN you share for a streaming profile. We cannot make a short code as strong as a huge random key. We can refuse to store it, and we can refuse to pretend we can undo a blank memory.
What AES-256 does not buy you
It does not hide your IP address. The site that served the file saw a request. Your network operator saw a destination. A workplace gateway can still log hosts. Ciphertext on flash storage does not rewrite those logs.
It does not make tracker blocking complete. Ads, analytics, and social trackers are stopped by bundled Disconnect lists that run on the device. No blocker catches everything. Per-site exceptions exist when a page needs a blocked resource. Lists are not the vault. The vault is not a blocker.
It does not make you anonymous, untraceable, or invisible. We do not claim fingerprint spoofing as a product. We do not market a proxy. We are not Tor. Private Browser Incognito is iOS only. AES-256 is the vault cipher. It is not a personality for the whole app.
It does not survive a panic wipe. A panic code at the lock screen silently wipes tabs, the entire vault, and the break-in log, then opens what looks like a fresh start. Self-destruct can optionally destroy the vault after too many wrong codes. Encryption does not provide an undelete. Erased data cannot be recovered.
Backups, clouds, and copies we do not keep
Vault files are excluded from backups. They stay on the device. That is a product choice, not a poem about lockers. If the phone is gone, the sealed files are gone. If you expected iCloud to hold a spare, you wanted a different design. The backup article is Vault Files and iCloud Backup.
There is no Private Browser cloud. There are no accounts and no app server for browsing. StoreKit is how you buy Stealth Suite through Apple. Page loads go to sites you visit. Search goes to the engine you chose. Downloads are transfers you start. Nothing else is a place we stash your files. The App Store privacy label is Data Not Collected: no analytics SDK, no ads in the app, no third-party SDKs.
Session erase still does not clear the vault. One-tap erase destroys cookies, cache, site data, and open tabs. Kept files remain sealed until you delete them or a wipe that is designed to take the vault. Mixing erase with encryption in one sentence is a good way to scare people into deleting the wrong store. They are separate switches.
Where this sits in Stealth Suite
The free browser is the forgetful core: no history file, on-device blocking, one-tap erase, App Lock, HTTPS-Only Mode. The vault is paid kit, with decoy, panic, break-in log, self-destruct, and icon colors (Midnight, Ocean, Ember). Prices: monthly $4.99, yearly $19.99 with a 7-day trial, lifetime $49.99. If a subscription lapses, protections you already enabled keep working and the vault stays accessible.
| Phrase | What we mean | What we do not mean |
|---|---|---|
| AES-256 | The vault cipher on device | Military grade, unbreakable, magic |
| No plain copy | Ciphertext on disk, not a spare original | The file never existed on a server you visited |
| Passcode as key | Never stored, not recoverable | We can email you a reset |
| Excluded from backups | Stays on this iPhone | A cloud we host |
| Not a VPN | IP still visible | Anonymous on the network |
Use that table when other apps say encrypted and then ask for an account. An account is a place a key or a copy can live besides the phone. We do not have one. That is the useful half of “nothing to trust us with.” The other half is already in the callout: sites still see requests, lists still miss names, and a 17+ browser still loads whatever URL you type. AES-256 is how the kept file is written. It is not how the internet forgets you.
Private Browser IncognitoFree on the App Store. No history, on-device blocking, one-tap erase.
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Frequently asked questions
What does AES-256 mean in the download vault?
AES-256 is the cipher used to seal vault files on the device. Bytes on disk are ciphertext. There is no plain copy sitting beside them. The name is a standard, not a mood, and we do not call it military grade. Encryption on disk is about residue on this iPhone, not anonymity on the network.
If I forget the vault passcode, can you recover my files?
No. The passcode is never stored. It becomes the key. Forgotten passcodes cannot be recovered. If you forget it, data sealed under it is permanently inaccessible, by you or by us. There is no reset email. That irreversibility is how a key that is not stored has to work.
Does AES-256 hide my IP address?
No. A cipher on a file after download does not change the path that fetched it. Sites you visit and your network operator can still see your IP address. A browser is not a VPN. AES-256 in the vault is not Tor, not a proxy we market, and not fingerprint spoofing.
Are encrypted vault files backed up to iCloud?
Vault files are excluded from backups. They stay on the device. There is no cloud copy on our servers. There are no accounts and no app server for browsing. If you lose the phone, the sealed files on it are gone with it.
Is the AES-256 vault free?
The vault is part of Stealth Suite: monthly $4.99, yearly $19.99 with a 7-day trial, or lifetime $49.99. App Lock is free. Session erase does not clear the vault. A panic code can wipe it. If a subscription lapses, protections you already enabled keep working and the vault stays accessible.