ChatGPT is often used for personal questions, work discussions, brainstorming, and conversations that users may not want appearing in their regular chat history. OpenAI’s new Locked Chats feature adds another layer of privacy by allowing users to move selected conversations behind an account PIN or supported device authentication.
The feature is useful, especially if you share your computer or phone or sometimes share your screen. However, the padlock should not be mistaken for a completely private digital vault. Locked Chats changes how you access and find a conversation; it does not provide every form of data protection.
Here’s how the feature works, how to use it, and what you should know before trusting it with sensitive information.
What Is ChatGPT’s Locked Chats Feature?
Locked Chats lets you protect selected saved conversations so they no longer appear in your regular chat history or ordinary conversation search. To access them, you open the dedicated Locked Chats area and authenticate with your four-digit account PIN or a supported device authentication method.
The feature is designed to help keep conversations out of view when you share a device or present your screen. It is not the same as deleting a chat, and locking a conversation does not automatically change your existing data-retention or model-improvement settings.
OpenAI says the feature is rolling out gradually, so the option may not appear for every account or eligible conversation immediately.
How to Lock a Chat in ChatGPT
Follow these steps to lock an eligible conversation:
- Open ChatGPT and find the conversation you want to protect.
- Open the chat’s three-dot menu (•••).
- Select Lock chat.
- Confirm your choice.
- Create a four-digit account PIN if prompted, or enter your existing PIN.
The conversation should move into Projects > Locked chats and disappear from regular chat history and ordinary conversation search. It may take some time for search results or other open devices to refresh.
On supported mobile devices, you may also be able to use Face ID, Touch ID, or your device’s unlock method.
How to Open a Locked Chat
To access a protected conversation:
- Open Projects in ChatGPT.
- Select Locked chats.
- Enter your account PIN or use an available authentication method.
- Select the conversation you want to view.
When you finish, use Lock now to end access immediately where that option is available. On the web and desktop, access is tied to the browser tab or app window where you authenticated. On mobile, access normally ends automatically after a short period away from the locked-chat area.
Important: Check other devices before sharing your screen. Open devices may briefly continue showing a chat title or previously loaded content until they refresh.
Why the Padlock Isn’t Foolproof
Locked Chats is a helpful privacy feature, but it has limits.
1. It Is Not End-to-End Encryption
OpenAI explicitly says locking a conversation does not create end-to-end encryption or a separate encrypted vault. The feature adds an access barrier inside ChatGPT, but users should not assume it provides the same protection as a service designed around end-to-end encrypted messaging.
2. It Does Not Change Chat Retention
Locking a chat does not change how long OpenAI retains it. It also does not automatically turn off the setting that allows eligible conversations to be used to improve models.
If you want to change your model-improvement preference, review your ChatGPT data controls separately. Locking a conversation and managing data-use settings are different actions.
3. Previously Saved Memories May Remain
Locking a conversation does not erase information ChatGPT remembered before the chat was locked. If you have shared personal information that was saved to Memory, review your Memory and personalization settings separately.
Locked chats can also use relevant information from regular Memory when Memory is enabled. Locking a conversation should therefore not be treated as a way to erase all traces of information from your account.
4. Shared Links Need Separate Attention
If you lock a conversation that already has a shared link, locking it does not delete that link. People who already have access to the shared content may still be able to view it.
If you no longer want the shared content to be accessible, manage or delete the shared link separately. A conversation created from a shared link cannot itself be locked.
5. Your PIN Is Important
A four-digit PIN is convenient, but it is still a short code. Choose one that is not easy for someone who knows you to guess, and avoid sharing it.
There is also a major recovery warning: resetting a forgotten account PIN permanently deletes all Locked Chats and content protected only by the previous PIN. This can include protected files and information remembered only within those chats. OpenAI Support cannot recover content deleted by this reset.
If you know your current PIN and simply want to change it, use the Change PIN option rather than resetting a forgotten PIN.
Best Practices for Using Locked Chats Safely
You can get more benefit from the feature by combining it with sensible privacy habits.
- Use a unique PIN: Avoid obvious combinations such as 1234 or your birth year.
- Lock chats when you finish: Use Lock now when available, particularly before sharing your screen.
- Secure your device and account: Use a strong device passcode and protect your ChatGPT sign-in.
- Review shared links: Locking a chat does not revoke a link that was shared previously.
- Check Memory settings: Locking a chat does not erase information that ChatGPT already remembered.
- Review model-improvement settings: These settings remain separate from Locked Chats.
- Be careful with files: Files uploaded or created in a locked conversation receive protection associated with that chat, but files brought in from elsewhere may retain their existing access rules.
- Keep your PIN safe: If you forget it, resetting it can permanently delete locked conversations and protected content.
Most importantly, avoid treating any privacy feature as a reason to share passwords, banking credentials, recovery codes, or other secrets unnecessarily.
Locked Chats vs. Temporary Chat
Locked Chats and Temporary Chat serve different purposes.
Locked Chats is useful when you want to keep a conversation saved but hidden from regular chat history and protected by an authentication step. The conversation remains subject to your existing settings and applicable workspace policies.
Temporary Chat is designed for conversations that you do not want to appear in your history or be used to improve OpenAI’s models while they remain temporary. Temporary Chats do not create or update memories, though they may be retained for up to 30 days for safety purposes.
Choose the feature that matches your goal. Use Locked Chats to protect access to a saved conversation; consider Temporary Chat when you do not want a conversation saved to your normal history. Neither option should be treated as a guarantee that information is never retained under any circumstances.
Who Can Use Locked Chats?
OpenAI says Locked Chats are rolling out across ChatGPT plans, including Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu. Availability can depend on the platform and conversation type.
For example, some chats cannot be locked, including temporary chats, archived chats, group chats, conversations created from shared links, and chats associated with certain background tasks. On desktop, the feature is available in the newer ChatGPT app for macOS or Windows; support for other desktop experiences may differ.
If you cannot find Lock chat in the three-dot menu, check OpenAI’s current help instructions and allow for the possibility that the feature has not reached your account yet.
Final Verdict
ChatGPT Locked Chats is a useful addition for people who want sensitive conversations out of their regular history and behind a PIN or supported device authentication. It can help reduce accidental exposure when sharing a device or screen.
But it is an access-control feature, not a complete privacy guarantee. It does not create end-to-end encryption, change data-retention policies, erase existing memories, or automatically revoke shared links. Users should combine it with strong account and device security, careful data-sharing habits, and a review of their privacy settings.
The best approach is simple: use Locked Chats as an extra layer of protection, understand its limitations, and avoid sharing information that should never be exposed.
