Is Photo Recovery: Restore Files Safe?

Pick the permission prompt you saw. We compare it with what Photo Recovery: Restore Files' developer declared.

1. 1

   Photos

   Settings › Privacy & Security › Photos. Limited Access lets you pick exactly which pictures the app can see; Add Photos Only lets it save without reading your library.

2. 2

   Lock the app

   On iOS 18 and later, touch and hold the icon and choose Require Face ID. Anyone who picks up your unlocked phone then needs your face, fingerprint or passcode to open it.

3. 3

   Notifications

   Settings › Notifications › Photo Recovery: Restore Files › Show Previews: When Unlocked keeps message and account details off the Lock Screen.

Does Photo Recovery: Restore Files track you? Full answer and how to stop it →

1. Find Photo Recovery: Restore Files on your Home Screen or in App Library.
2. Touch and hold the icon until the quick-actions menu opens.
3. Tap Require Face ID (or Require Touch ID / Require Passcode, depending on your iPhone).
4. Tap Require Face ID again to confirm. Photo Recovery: Restore Files now asks for authentication every time it opens.

The lock is an iPhone feature, so it works whether or not Photo Recovery: Restore Files has a passcode of its own. It does not change what the app sends to its developer.

The current version shipped in October 2026, so the app is actively maintained and its label is likely current. Labels are updated by developers when practices change.

• A label is self-reported. Apple publishes the developer's answers and can reject apps that misrepresent them, but it does not independently verify what Photo Recovery: Restore Files sends.
• It does not say where data is stored, how long it is kept, whether it is encrypted, or which companies receive it. The privacy policy covers those points.
• Optional data counts: if a feature lets you add something (a profile photo, a phone number), the type is listed even if you never use the feature.
• Data handled only on your iPhone is not 'collected', so a no-collection label is compatible with an app that reads your files locally.
• Third-party sign-in, payment processors and SDKs are supposed to be included, but a label can lag behind a new version.

The question to ask Photo Recovery: Restore Files' developer: Is my photo library encrypted on their servers?

All photo backup apps →· Who tracks you? A–Z →· Privacy label decoder →

1. Q1Photo Recovery: Restore Files' privacy label says it uses data to track you.

   True False
   Right.

   Not quite.

   False: there is no Data Used to Track You section on Photo Recovery: Restore Files' label.

2. Q2Apple tests every app to confirm its privacy label is accurate.

   True False
   Right.

   Not quite.

   Labels are self-reported by developers. Apple can reject or remove apps that misrepresent practices, but it does not audit each label.

3. Q3An app with a “Data Not Collected” label cannot read any of your photos.

   True False
   Right.

   Not quite.

   It can read photos you give it access to. Processing on your device is not collection; only data sent off the phone counts.

4. Q4Data “Not Linked to You” is never sent off your iPhone.

   True False
   Right.

   Not quite.

   It is collected and sent; the developer says it is de-identified rather than tied to your account or device.

5. Q5Tapping “Ask App Not to Track” can stop an app from working.

   True False
   Right.

   Not quite.

   Apple's rules require apps to work the same whether or not you allow tracking.