How to Create a Hidden Album on Xiaomi: All Ways to Hide Photos and Videos

Hidden albums on Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones are not a luxury, but a necessity for many users. In the era of digital privacy, even ordinary family photos or work documents sometimes require additional protection. Fortunately, MIUI firmware offers several built-in ways to hide content, and third-party apps extend these capabilities to the level of a bank safe.

But there's a problem: not everyone knows that the Gallery's standard Hidden Album feature only works until the first flash or reset, and some users find that hidden files suddenly become visible after the MIUI update. In this article, we'll look at all the current ways to create hidden albums on Xiaomi, from basic to advanced, including solutions for devices without root rights and with them.

It's important to understand that "stealth" doesn't equal "security." Even hidden files can be accessed through a file manager or when connected to a PC. So we'll also touch on encryption and two-factor authentication for sensitive data.

1.Integrated Hidden Album at MIUI Gallery

The easiest way to hide photos and videos is to use Xiaomi’s standard Gallery feature, which is available on all devices with MIUI 12 and later, including the Redmi Note 12, POCO X5 and Xiaomi 13 models, the main advantage of which is that you do not need to install third-party apps.

To activate the hidden album:

1. Open the Gallery app.
2. Choose the photo or video you want to hide (you can choose multiple files).
3. Click on the three dots in the top right corner and select Hide.
4. Confirm the action by entering the screen lock password (if it is installed).

After that, the files will disappear from the main view of the gallery.

• 🔍 Go to the gallery. → Albums. → Hidden album.
• 🔐 Enter a password or fingerprint to access.
• 📁 Hidden files will be displayed with the mark "Protected".

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If you don't have the Hide option displayed in the Gallery menu, update the app via Google Play or MIUI App Store. On some firmware, this feature is hidden until it's updated.

⚠️ Note: Files from the hidden album remain accessible through file managers (such as Files or Total Commander).For complete privacy, use encryption (see Section 4).

MIUI Hidden Folder: Protected partition for files

Starting with MIUI 13, Xiaomi added Hidden Folder, which works at the system level, and unlike the hidden album in the Gallery, this method creates a secure storage that is not accessible without a password even through a file manager.

The algorithm for creating a hidden folder:

1. Open Settings → Privacy → Hidden folder.
2. Click Create a Hidden Folder and set a password (it may be different from the screen lock password).
3. Select files to be transferred to a hidden folder through the Gallery or Files.
4. Confirm the movement – files will be deleted from the original folder and placed in a secure storage.

Features of MIUI Hidden Folder:

• 🔒 Files are encrypted at the system level (AES-256 on MIUI 14+).
• 📱 Available only through the Settings menu → Privacy.
• 🔄 When resetting the phone, the hidden folder is deleted without the possibility of recovery.
• 🚫 Does not work on devices with unlocked bootloader (bootloader).

3. Third-party apps to hide albums

If the built-in MIUI features aren't enough, you can use third-party apps that offer additional features such as:

• 🔐 Two-factor authentication (for example, password) + print).
• 📊 Creating “fake” albums to distract attention.
• 🌐 Remote management via web interface.
• 📤 Automatic backup to the cloud.

Top.-3 apps:

1. KeepSafe supports biometric authentication and military-grade encryption. There is a free version with a limit of 50 files. Install: Google Play → Search "KeepSafe Photo Vault"
2. GalleryVault - hides files under the guise of a calculator or other innocuous application. Works without root rights.Installation: APKMirror (not available on Google Play for some regions)
3. 1Gallery is a complete replacement for the standard Gallery with hidden folders and cloud backup.Installation: Google Play → Search for "1Gallery"

⚠️ Note: Applications from third-party sources (such as APKMirror) may contain malicious code. Before installing, check the hash amounts of files on the developer's website.

Instructions for setting up KeepSafe:

4 Encrypting files before hiding

Even if you use Hidden Folder MIUI or third-party applications, it is best to encrypt files before hiding them, which will protect data in the event of loss of your phone or unauthorized access through ADB.

Encryption methods:

• 📱 Built-in encryption MIUI: Go to Settings. → Additionally. → Encryption and accounts. Choose Encrypt your phone (requires a lock password). 30-60 After that, all files will be encrypted.

Third-party instruments:

• Cryptomator – creates encrypted containers (works without root rights).
• VeraCrypt supports AES-256 and Serpent algorithms (requires a root for full functionality).

Important: Encrypting your phone at the MIUI level is not compatible with some custom firmware (like LineageOS).Before encrypting, back up your data via Mi Cloud or Google Drive.

An example of folder encryption using Cryptomator:

1. Install Cryptomator from F-Droid or Google Play.


2 Create a new "vault" in the phone's memory.




3. Transfer the files to an encrypted safe.




4. Connect the safe as a virtual drive through Cryptomator.




5. Hidden files will be available only after entering the password.

5. Hiding albums without root rights: workarounds

If you do not have root rights, but you need to securely hide files, you can use the following methods:

Method 1: Rename extensions

Xiaomi file managers do not show files with non-standard extensions by default, for example, you can rename photo.jpg to photo.jpg.secure. To return the original name, just remove.secure.

Method 2: Archiving with a password

• 📦 Use it. RAR or 7-Zip file-learning.
• 🔑 Set a complex password (for example, X7#p9L!k2@Q).
• 🗑️ Delete original files after archiving.

Method 3: Hidden folders in the file manager

In the Xiaomi Files app, you can create a folder with a dot at the beginning of a name (like.secret), which is not the default folder for most file managers, and you need to enable the display of hidden files in the settings to see them.

6. Hiding Root-Right Albums: Advanced Techniques

If your Xiaomi has an unlocked bootloader and root rights, more reliable ways to hide files are available:

Method 1: Change the file attributes

With Root Explorer or ADB, you can change the permissions to access files, making them inaccessible even for the system:

adb shell


su




chmod 000 /sdcard/DCIM/.hidden/photo.jpg

After that, the file will exist, but will not be read without root rights.

Method 2: Installation of the private section

Some MIUI firmware has a hidden /data/media/0/private partition where you can transfer files, which is only accessible via ADB or Root Browser.

Method 3: Magisk modules are used

• 🛡️ Hide My Applist Module – Hiding Apps and Associated Files.
• 🔒 App Systemizer Module – Transfers applications to the system partition, making them invisible to standard tools.

⚠️ Warning: Changing system partitions with root rights can lead to bootloop.Before experimenting, back up through TWRP or fastboot.

7.Restore access to hidden albums

If you lost access to hidden files (for example, after resetting settings or updating MIUI), try the following methods:

For the hidden album in the Gallery:

• 🔄 Reboot your phone – sometimes the album becomes visible after a reboot.
• 📥 Update the Gallery app to the latest version.
• 🔧 Clear the Gallery cache in Settings → Annexes → gallery → Warehouse.

For MIUI Hidden Folder:

• 🔐 Enter the old screen lock password (if it matches the hidden folder).
• 📧 Try to restore access through Mi Account if the folder was linked to the account.
• 🛠️ When connecting to the PC, check the folder /sdcard/.hiddenfolder through ADB:

adb pull /sdcard/.hiddenfolder C:\backup\

For third-party applications:

• 📌 Try to restore access via email if the app supports cloud backup.
• 🔑 Use the "Forgot Password" function (if it is in the application).
• 💻 Connect your phone to your PC and scan the memory with Recuva or DiskDigger.