Boring grey folders? Not on your Mac.
hYYa isn’t only an encryptor — it bundles a full Folder Styler for your everyday Finder folders. Give any folder a custom color and an emblem from hundreds of symbols, an emoji, or your own image. Free for your first 3 folders — Pro unlocks unlimited styling. Every color and every emblem is included; the only cap is how many folders you style for free. (Encrypted vaults aren’t styled here — they always wear hYYa’s own vault look. Folder Styler is for your everyday Finder folders.)
Lock what’s private. Add color to everything else.
Your private files, actually locked.
Most "folder lock" apps just hide your files or hang a password screen in front of them — the files themselves stay readable. hYYa Encrypted Folder is different: it wraps your files in real AES-256 encryption using Apple's CryptoKit, and opens them with Touch ID. Until you unlock, they're an opaque, encrypted package — even to someone sitting at your Mac. No account, no servers, nothing collected.
Real encryption, effortless to live with.
Actually encrypted — not just hidden
Most folder-lock apps only hide files or add a password screen. hYYa encrypts them with Apple's CryptoKit (AES-256). Until you unlock, they're unreadable — even to someone sitting at your Mac.
Open with a touch
Unlock vaults with Touch ID. Your 256-bit key lives in the macOS Keychain behind Touch ID, end-to-end encrypted wherever it goes — not us, not Apple, nobody but you can read it.
Any file, any size
Files are encrypted in streaming chunks, so a 50 GB video is as safe — and as smooth — as a text note.
Nothing to give you away
Inside a vault, filenames are hidden; on disk it's an opaque, encrypted package. No previews, no leaks.
Locks itself
Vaults re-lock the moment you quit — plaintext is never left lying around.
iCloud sync, end to end
Drop a vault in iCloud Drive and it syncs across your Macs and devices, encrypted the whole way — the files inside and their names travel as ciphertext, and only the vault's own name is visible, because that is its filename. hYYa runs no server and never holds your files.
Open it on your other devices
Set one sync passphrase — once per device, not per folder — and the folders you keep in iCloud open on your iPhone, iPad and Mac.
Private by design
No account. No tracking. No ads. No analytics. Nothing collected means nothing to leak.
A vault that looks like it belongs on your devices.
A few real screens from the Mac and iPhone apps — one for each thing it does. iPad runs the same app.
On iPhone
A lock with no backdoor.
Other apps make privacy a promise they could break — a hidden folder, a password you could reset, files still readable underneath. hYYa makes it math. Your files are encrypted with a key only you can read — end-to-end encrypted wherever it goes, behind Touch ID. We hold nothing, so there's nothing for us to hand over, leak, or lose.
Free where it counts. One-time for the rest.
Real encryption and folder styling — free to try. Pro is a single purchase — never a subscription.
- Up to 2 encrypted folders
- AES-256 vaults
- Touch ID unlock
- In-app file browser
- Folder Styler — style up to 3 folders (all colors & emblems included)
- Auto-lock on quit
- Unlimited folders — encrypt as many as you like
- Unlimited Folder Styler — style every folder, not just 3
- Auto-Lock on sleep or a timer
Frequently Asked Questions
What is hYYa Encrypted Folder?
hYYa Encrypted Folder is a native Mac, iPhone and iPad app that locks your files inside encrypted vaults you open with Face ID or Touch ID. It uses real AES-256 encryption powered by Apple's CryptoKit, so your files stay completely unreadable until you unlock them. The core app is free to try, with no account and no data collection.
Is it actually encrypted, or just hidden?
Actually encrypted. Most "folder lock" apps only hide files or put a password screen in front of them, leaving the files readable on disk. hYYa encrypts them with Apple's CryptoKit (AES-256). Until you unlock a vault, its contents are unreadable — even to someone sitting at your Mac.
Is it free — what's in Pro?
The core app (hYYa Core) is free — up to 2 encrypted folders — with AES-256 vaults, Touch ID unlock, an in-app file browser, Folder Styler for up to 3 folders (all colors and emblems), and auto-lock on quit. An optional one-time Pro unlock ($19.99, not a subscription) adds unlimited folders, unlimited Folder Styler, and Auto-Lock on sleep/timer.
Do I need an account or the internet?
No. hYYa Encrypted Folder works with no account and no internet connection. Everything happens locally on your Mac. hYYa runs no server and never holds your files.
How do I unlock my files (Touch ID)?
With Touch ID — or your Mac password if biometrics aren't available. Your 256-bit encryption key lives in the macOS Keychain behind Touch ID, end-to-end encrypted wherever it goes — not us, not Apple, nobody but you can read it. Unlock a vault with a touch, and it re-locks the moment you quit the app.
What if I lose my Mac or my key?
The encryption is real, so there is no backdoor and no master key — we hold nothing, and we cannot unlock your files or hand them over. Folders you keep in iCloud can be opened on your other devices with your sync passphrase; folders you keep only on this Mac stay only here. If no device holds the key and the passphrase is forgotten, the encrypted files cannot be recovered — by us or by anyone. That is the point of true encryption. Keep your own backups of anything irreplaceable.
Can it sync across my Macs?
Yes. Drop a vault in iCloud Drive and it syncs across your Macs and devices — encrypted the whole way — the files inside and their names travel as ciphertext, and only the vault's own name is visible, because that is its filename. hYYa runs no server and never holds your files.
Which Macs does it run on?
hYYa Encrypted Folder is a universal app that runs on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, on macOS 14 Sonoma and later. It is free to download and notarized by Apple.
Can I open my folders on my iPhone or iPad?
Yes — folders you keep in iCloud open on your iPhone, iPad and Mac. You set one sync passphrase — the same one on each device (app-wide, not per folder). On a device that already holds the folder’s key, Face ID or Touch ID is all you need; the passphrase is only asked for when a device doesn’t have the key yet, so it’s a setup and recovery step rather than a daily one. Underneath, the folder’s key is wrapped with your passphrase (PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256 at 650,000 iterations, then AES-GCM) into a small file that travels inside the vault on ordinary iCloud Drive sync — it’s ciphertext, and useless to anyone without your passphrase. Folders you keep on one device only are never wrapped and never sync. The file listing and every file's contents travel as ciphertext; the vault's own name travels in the clear, because it is the package's filename. hYYa runs no server and holds nothing.
Does hYYa Encrypted Folder update itself?
Yes — updates arrive through the App Store, like any other app you install from it. hYYa Encrypted Folder for macOS is distributed on the App Store only, so you get new versions automatically if you have automatic app updates switched on, or on demand from the App Store’s Updates tab. There is no separate direct download to keep up to date.
What data do you collect?
None. No account, no tracking, no ads, no analytics. Your files are encrypted on your Mac and never sent to us. Nothing is collected, so there is nothing to leak.