OpenAI has started rolling out Locked Chats in ChatGPT: you can now move a conversation behind a four-digit PIN — or Face ID / Touch ID on supported devices — so it stays hidden when someone else sees your screen or borrows your phone. Why it matters: it is a genuinely useful privacy layer for the personal conversations people increasingly have with ChatGPT, but OpenAI is explicit that a lock is not encryption.
October 20, 2026
What happened
OpenAI announced the feature on Tuesday, October 20, with a gradual rollout. Once you lock a chat, it moves into a dedicated “Locked Chats” section, separate from your regular chat history, pinned conversations and chat search results. Unlike Temporary Chats — which vanish from history entirely — a locked chat stays in your account and you can return to it whenever you unlock it.
What the lock does — and does not do
OpenAI’s own list of caveats is the important part. Locking a chat does not create end-to-end encryption or a separate encrypted vault. It does not change how long OpenAI retains the chat, does not remove information ChatGPT already remembered before you locked it, and does not change your “Improve the model for everyone” training setting.
Memory does get a wall, though: with Memory enabled, Locked Chats has its own separate memory shared across the locked section. New messages in a locked chat can update that separate memory, but they do not update your regular Memory — so details from a locked conversation should not surface in ordinary chats later.
The catch: resetting your PIN deletes everything
If you reset your PIN, OpenAI says all locked chats, files and other content protected by the old PIN are permanently deleted. The option is also unavailable for some chat types: temporary chats, archived chats, group chats, chats created from a shared link, chats with scheduled tasks, and chats with meeting recordings.
Why it matters
People tell chatbots things they would not put in a group chat — health worries, money problems, a surprise party. The realistic threat for most users is not a hacker; it is handing your phone to a friend, a kid, or a coworker and having a sensitive thread sitting in the sidebar. Locked Chats solves exactly that problem, cheaply and simply. Just do not mistake it for secrecy from OpenAI itself: retention and training settings are unchanged, so anything you would not want stored on OpenAI’s servers still does not belong in ChatGPT — locked or not. The feature is available across Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu plans (not ChatGPT for Healthcare), and it is rolling out gradually, so it may take a few days to appear in your account.
FAQ
How do I lock a ChatGPT chat?
Open the chat, use its menu to choose the lock option, and set a four-digit PIN. On supported mobile devices you can unlock with Face ID or Touch ID instead. The chat then lives in the Locked Chats section.
Are locked chats encrypted?
No. OpenAI says locking does not add end-to-end encryption or an encrypted vault, and it does not change data retention or model-training settings.
What happens if I forget or reset my PIN?
Resetting the PIN permanently deletes all locked chats, files and content protected by the previous PIN, according to OpenAI.
Who can use Locked Chats?
It is rolling out to ChatGPT Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu plans. It is not available on ChatGPT for Healthcare, and some chat types (temporary, archived, group, shared-link, scheduled-task and meeting-recording chats) cannot be locked.
Sources: TechCrunch, Engadget