A browser is not a VPN. A PIN lock keeps the session closed on the phone. It does not hide your IP address from sites you visit or from your network operator. Tracking protection is list-based and not absolute: known ads, analytics, and social trackers from bundled lists are blocked on the device, but no blocker catches everything. Private Browser Incognito is rated 17+ for unrestricted web access and is intended for adults.
People type PIN lock when they want a number on the private browser itself, not only on the iPhone. No history file, on-device blocking, and one-tap erase answer what the app stores and what extra requests a page tries to fire. They do not answer a roommate, a colleague, or a child who opens the icon. A PIN on the app is that answer: the session stays closed until the right six digits, or Face ID if you enabled it, open the door.
In Private Browser Incognito that door is App Lock. Search language says PIN. The product is a six-digit passcode. It is free for everyone in the shipping default. It is not a trial of three unlocks and it is not a paywall in front of the basics. This page is the search landing: what a PIN lock is for, what it is not, and which kit is separate. The longer essay on why those six digits are a key rather than a stored password is Your Six-Digit Passcode Is the Key. The everyday walkthrough of the door is App Lock With Passcode and Face ID.
Why a forgetful browser still needs a PIN
Every tab is a private session held in memory. There is no browsing history feature and no history file to clear. That helps after you leave. It does not help while the tabs are still open. Cookies and caches still exist for the life of the session so pages can work. Someone who picks up an unlocked phone and taps the icon can see that working state unless a lock sits in front of it. The empty recents list is not a closed door.
A PIN lock is a local control. There are no accounts and no sign-in. There is no app server for browsing. The App Store privacy label is Data Not Collected: no analytics SDK, no ads in the app, no third-party SDKs. Locking the icon does not reroute page loads. Sites you visit and your network operator can still see your IP address. HTTPS-Only Mode asks before falling back to insecure HTTP. It does not hide who you are talking to. The PIN is for the person holding the phone, not for the network behind it.
Lock when the phone might be picked up. Erase when the working state should die. Closing a tab is a third verb: that page leaves the screen, and the rest of the session may still be alive. People who wanted PIN lock usually wanted the first verb. They wanted the icon to refuse. That is a reasonable want on a shared iPhone. It is not a substitute for erase, and it is not a VPN.
Six digits, free, never stored
App Lock with a six-digit passcode and Face ID is free for everyone in the shipping default. You should not have to pay to close the real session. Enter the number, or use Face ID if you turned it on, and the session you were in is there. Fail, and the app stays closed. The passcode is never stored. It becomes the key. We cannot show it later. We cannot email a reset. We will not invent exact platform API names or a cloud verifier with our logo on it. The claim is simpler: the PIN is not a password we keep a copy of.
Forgotten passcodes cannot be recovered. If you forget it, data sealed under it is permanently inaccessible, by you or by us. That is not a support article we can reverse later. There is no recovery email because there is no account. If Face ID is still enabled you can unlock with it and then change the code while you still remember a path in. If Face ID is off and the code is gone, reinstalling lets you start a new app. It does not restore sealed tabs or vault files. The irreversible support conversation is If You Forget the Passcode There Is No Recovery.
Choose a code you can remember without writing it on a note that lives in the same pocket as the phone. Do not pick a birthday that everyone in the house already knows. Do not pick six identical digits because they are easy to type in a hurry. The lock is only as strong as the number you will actually keep. Guessing your own forgotten PIN is not recovery. In Stealth Suite, too many wrong codes can fire self-destruct. If you know you have lost the digits, stop guessing and use Face ID if it still works, or accept a fresh install.
Private Browser IncognitoPIN lock is free. Six digits. Face ID optional. There is no recovery.
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Face ID is convenience, not the PIN
Search treats Face ID and PIN as two names for the same lock. They are not. The six-digit passcode is the key. Face ID is how you skip typing those digits when the sensor matches. You turn it on in the app. When it matches, the real session opens. When it does not, you type the PIN. That is the whole relationship. Face ID is not a backup key we hold, not a second identity on a Private Browser server, and not something we can reset if the passcode is gone.
If Face ID is enabled you can still unlock with it after you have forgotten the six digits. That window is device behavior, not a recovery product we sell. Use it, then set a new passcode you will actually remember. Do not treat the camera as a spare copy of the number. Unlocking with Face ID uses the device’s existing biometrics, with permission you grant in the app. We do not receive a face template. We do not receive the PIN.
Keep Face ID on if you want faster unlocking for a key you still own. Keep it off if you want every open to require the number. Either choice is local. Neither choice hides your IP. Neither choice makes tracker blocking absolute. Rated 17+ still applies: this is a real web browser with unrestricted access. You are responsible for what you visit and for using the app lawfully. A locked browser is still a browser once it is open.
Not the iPhone passcode
The device passcode, or device Face ID, unlocks the phone. The browser PIN opens this app or keeps the session closed. Unlocking the iPhone does not open Private Browser Incognito if App Lock is on. Someone who knows the phone code and does not know the app code should meet a closed browser. That is the point on a shared device: the home screen is not the session. Apple’s lock is for the device. Ours is for this app. We do not receive either one.
The two secrets should not be the same number if you can help it. A borrowed phone is often unlocked already. Reusing the device code turns App Lock into a delay, not a door. We cannot force you to pick a different six digits. We can say the jobs are distinct. Mixing them is how people expect Settings to reset this app, or expect a forgotten iPhone passcode flow to unseal tabs. Those flows do not have our key, because we never stored it. The split of those two doors is Lock the Browser, Not the Whole iPhone.
App Lock does not lock Messages, Photos, or the rest of iOS. It does not empty the encrypted download vault. It does not fire erase. Session erase is still the everyday wipe: the trash action closes every tab and destroys cookies, cache, and site data. There is a home-screen quick action so you do not have to open the UI first. Session erase does not clear the vault. Lock hides. Erase destroys the session. They are easy to mash into one wish called PIN lock. They are not the same control.
Stealth Suite is a different kit
The PIN lock is free. Stealth Suite is optional Apple IAP: monthly $4.99, yearly $19.99 with a 7-day trial, or lifetime $49.99. It adds a decoy passcode, a panic code, a break-in log with optional Intruder Photo, self-destruct, the encrypted vault, and icon colors (Midnight, Ocean, Ember). None of those extras stores the real key. None of them is required to use the free PIN. If a subscription lapses, protections you already enabled keep working and the vault stays accessible.
A decoy you remember opens a clean, empty browser. Real tabs stay hidden. The decoy is a second number at the same lock screen, not the PIN lock people searched for. A panic code is a third number: it silently wipes tabs, the entire vault, and the break-in log, then opens what looks like a fresh start. Do not type panic hoping it is a reset. Intruder Photo is off until you enable it. Camera permission is asked when you turn that feature on, never at the lock screen. Photos may depict other people. You are responsible for local law.
If you are comparing apps, the PIN-lock question is simple: is it free, is the secret stored, and can anyone recover it.
| Door | What it is | What a PIN-lock search is not asking for |
|---|---|---|
| App Lock PIN | Free six-digit passcode. Never stored. No recovery | Not a paid upgrade |
| Face ID | Convenience unlocking while enabled | Not the key we can reset |
| Device passcode | Unlocks the iPhone | Does not open this app by itself |
| Decoy passcode | Stealth Suite. A second scene | Not the free PIN lock |
| Panic code | Stealth Suite. A wipe at the lock screen | Not a PIN reset |
Use the table on this app and on anything else you install. If a product can email you a new PIN, it stored something we refuse to store. Private Browser Incognito is iOS only. Keep the passcode. Treat Face ID as faster unlocking. A locked private browser is still not anonymous on the network. It is a closed door on a forgetful session, which is the thing the PIN-lock search was actually for.
Private Browser IncognitoFree on the App Store. No history, on-device blocking, one-tap erase.
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Frequently asked questions
Does a private browser for iPhone have a PIN lock?
Yes. Private Browser Incognito includes App Lock with a six-digit passcode and Face ID. People search PIN lock for that door. It sits in front of the real session. It is free in the shipping default. It does not hide your IP, and it is not a VPN. It keeps someone who picks up the phone from opening the tabs.
Is the PIN lock free?
Yes. App Lock with a six-digit passcode and Face ID is free for everyone in the shipping default. You should not have to pay to close the real session. Stealth Suite is a separate optional kit for a decoy passcode, panic code, break-in log, self-destruct, an encrypted vault, and icon colors. Paying does not unlock the PIN. The PIN already ships free.
Can I recover a forgotten PIN on Private Browser Incognito?
No. The six-digit 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 because there is no account. If Face ID is still enabled you can unlock with it and change the code while you still have a path in.
Is the browser PIN the same as my iPhone passcode?
No. Your device passcode unlocks the phone. The browser PIN is a six-digit App Lock code that opens this app or keeps the session closed. Unlocking the iPhone does not open Private Browser Incognito if App Lock is on. They are distinct doors. Reusing the same number on a borrowed, already-unlocked phone turns the app lock into a delay, not a door.
Is Face ID the PIN lock?
No. Face ID is convenience unlocking so you do not have to type the six digits every time. The passcode is the key. Face ID is not a second key we hold, not a backup we can reset, and not a cloud identity. When the sensor matches, the real session opens. When it does not, you type the PIN. Treat Face ID as faster unlocking for a key you still own.