How to Save PDF Passwords Securely on iPhone

Store PDF passwords in Apple's Passwords app, a locked note, or an app that keeps them in the Keychain behind Face ID, never in a plain note.

The safest places for PDF passwords on iPhone are Apple's Passwords app, a locked note, or an app that keeps them in the iPhone Keychain behind Face ID or Touch ID. An ordinary note or a WhatsApp "note to self" isn't a good place, because anyone who picks up your unlocked phone can read it.

Why not a regular note or chat?

• No extra lock. An ordinary note opens as soon as the phone is unlocked.
• It shows up in search. Typing "password" into iPhone search can surface it.
• It spreads. Notes in Gmail or other synced accounts, chat backups and screenshots end up in more places than you expect.
• Passwords sit next to the files. If your statements and their passwords are both in the same chat, the PDF password protects nothing.

Option 1: Apple's Passwords app

The Passwords app stores entries in encrypted form, and iCloud Keychain keeps them up to date across your approved devices (Apple: View your passwords). It's built for website logins, but you can add an entry for a document:

1. Open Passwords, tap All, then tap the add button (Apple: Create a password).
2. Put something like "Bank statement PDF" in the website or app field, add a label as the user name, and type the PDF password.
3. Save. Later, tap Edit > Notes to add details such as "format: first 4 letters of name + DDMM". Apple says you can keep notes such as PIN numbers and security questions here securely.

Storing the format rather than the password itself is a neat trick for statements that use your details. Next year's statement will use the same rule.

Option 2: A locked note

In Notes you can lock a note with your device passcode or a separate password and open it with Face ID or Touch ID (Apple: Lock your notes on iPhone). Things to know:

• You can only lock notes stored on the device or in iCloud, not notes synced with Gmail or other accounts.
• You can't lock a note that has a PDF attached, so keep the password note separate from the file.
• The note's title stays visible in the list, so give it a plain title.
• If you use a custom Notes password and forget it, Apple says it can't help you get back into those notes.

Option 3: Save it in the app that opens the PDF

UnKey can save the password when you unlock a statement, so next month's PDF in the same format opens with Face ID or Touch ID. Saved passwords stay in the iPhone Keychain on that device. They aren't uploaded anywhere. Because they're device-only, they won't follow you to a new phone, so keep a backup of anything important in the Passwords app.

Good practice

• Use a strong device passcode. Face ID is only as safe as the passcode behind it.
• Don't screenshot passwords. Screenshots sync to Photos and get shared by accident.
• When you share a protected PDF, send the password another way, for example by phone.
• Remove entries you no longer need. In Passwords, open the entry, tap Edit, then Delete.

Questions

Sources

• Apple – View your passwords and related information on iPhone
• Apple – Create a password for a website or app on iPhone
• Apple – Lock your notes on iPhone

Formats can change. If a password doesn't work, check the email the document came with or contact the issuer. UnKey isn't affiliated with any bank, employer or authority named here.