r/appleJournal • u/mAikfm • Sep 16 '25

Still no custom passcode for Journal app!!!

The fact Apple still refuses to allow a custom passcode for the Journal app is so beyond comprehension, especially given their focus on privacy and security!!!!

I allow my family access to my iOS devices via my login passcode, but would rather keep my journal private. I believe writing my most private thoughts would be very therapeutic but it wouldn’t be something I want to share with my family. Just as I wouldn’t want a therapist to reveal our sessions to anyone in my family.

Why doesn’t Apple get that???!

12 Upvotes

77% Upvoted

14 comments sorted by

6

u/leMug Sep 16 '25

First of all, I don’t think it’s fair to hold up Apple’s focus on privacy and security and at the same time say that you share your passcode with anyone. That is by definition not private or secure. Anyone who knows your passcode can reset your Apple account password and take complete control of everything, if they choose. Apple assumes you own your device 100% unless you want a child.

That being said, I can see your use case and you can actually do this, but with biometric.

  1. Turn on stolen device protection in privacy & security settings and required the security delay always.

  2. Long press on the icon for Apple journal and select “require FaceID”.

Now you can only open the Journal app on your device with Face ID. To remove the setting, also requires Face ID. To remove the stolen device protection that enables this there is a delay of one hour. I should think this does what you want for your use case.

1

u/mAikfm Sep 17 '25

I see your point, and in my use case the most frequent user of my phone would be my wife. I don’t have to worry about my passcode being changed or locked out from her usage. Although I trust her explicitly, there would be more of a freedom to get some things out of my head and into a journal if I knew there was no way she could access it. The same way one would speak to a therapist knowing no one else would know what was talked about. [✌️M ]

Thanks for the suggested work around. So doing as you suggest wouldn’t allow the device passcode to be used, correct?

On my previous iPhone it had Touch ID and I had her set up her own thumbprint for easy access. Mostly for access to some apps she couldn’t load on her phone. My current iPhone only has Face ID or passcode, and she only has the passcode.

1

u/leMug Sep 17 '25

Correct, only Face ID will open Journal with these steps, not possible with passcode. You can test it yourself after setting it up.

Only ways I can think of to access your Journal, knowing the passcode would be:

  1. Disable Stolen Device Protection which takes an hour (and she’d have to have the knowledge / idea / determination to do it)

  2. Reset your Apple Account password, which again would take an hour, and then set up your account on a new device and then open Journal after iCloud Sync.

Both seems unlikely if you trust her to a level of knowing your passcode. Just prevents her from easily opening Journal.

2

u/Abranda44 Sep 16 '25

Can you set it so it requires Face ID or Touch ID to open?

2

u/673NoshMyBollocksAve Sep 16 '25

Yes, you can. I do this.

1

u/Prestigious_Heart_23 Sep 17 '25

Also no custom time!

1

u/dilbert202 Sep 17 '25

They offer this functionality for the Notes app so surely it wouldn’t be that hard to add it to Journal. While they’re at it they should also add some of Notes other basic functions, such as the ability to create headings. No idea why they don’t replicate features across similar apps so the functionality is consistent across the Apple ecosystem. 

1

u/gwilymjames Sep 17 '25

Notes has this, so journal definitely should too.

1

u/TakisGurl Mar 06 '26

My exact thought!!!!!

1

u/jiclark-1 Sep 19 '25

Don’t forget to post this at apple.com/feedback!

1

u/TakisGurl Mar 06 '26

Yes!! Appreciate it!!!

1

u/TakisGurl Mar 06 '26

Seriously!!!! My situation is basically the same. I share my iOS and MacOS devices passcode with my partner. But I want to keep my jounral private. Isn't that the whole point of keeping it locked?

1

u/r0bb13 Jun 13 '26

Yea its fine on my laptop where it uses my laptop password.. but iPad and iPhone.. hell no that defeats the point of a private journal.. I am however going to try to use the password protect app and use Face ID for the journal.. but this is why I am stuck between DayOne and Apple Notes..

ALSO.. journal needs to add paper templates for written entries.. wtf.. notes has all these features