ChatGPT now lets you lock private chats with a PIN

Ever handed someone your phone or let them use your computer to show them something, then suddenly worried about what else they might see? Maybe you've been using ChatGPT to work through a personal issue or plan a surprise for someone. Your conversation history can reveal quite a bit.

Now, OpenAI is giving you a way to keep certain conversations out of sight. The company just introduced Locked Chats, a new feature that lets you protect individual ChatGPT conversations with a four-digit PIN. On supported devices, you can also use Face ID, Touch ID or your phone's unlock method.

That sounds reassuring, especially as more people turn to for personal advice. However, there are a few privacy limitations worth understanding before you start locking everything down. Here's how the feature works and how to set it up.

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OpenAI's new Locked Chats feature allows you to protect selected conversations without deleting them. Once you lock a chat, it moves into a separate area under Projects > Locked chats. The conversation disappears from your regular chat history, pinned chats and standard search results. Its title and contents stay behind your PIN until you choose to open them. You can even continue the conversation later without moving it back into your regular history.

Think about how useful that could be if you share a computer with your spouse or occasionally let someone use your phone. Perhaps you're researching an anniversary surprise and don't want the details popping up in your sidebar. Now, you have a way to keep that conversation separate.

There's one important detail if you already use ChatGPT Projects. Locking a conversation removes it from its original project. As a result, the conversation loses access to that project's instructions, files and memory. Even if you unlock it later, the conversation returns to your regular history rather than its previous project.

The feature is rolling out gradually to ChatGPT Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu users. It works on the web, in the iPhone and Android apps and in the new ChatGPT desktop apps for Mac and Windows. OpenAI says ChatGPT for Healthcare does not support Locked Chats.

You can lock an existing conversation in a few steps. The process is similar whether you're using ChatGPT on your computer, iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel.

Note: If you don't see Lock chat, the feature may not have reached your account yet. OpenAI is releasing it gradually. Some conversation types also cannot be locked.

Your conversation will move into Locked chats. The PIN belongs to your OpenAI account, so you can use the same PIN across supported devices where you're signed in.

Note: If you don't see Lock chat, the feature may not have reached your account yet. OpenAI is releasing it gradually. Some conversation types also cannot be locked.

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