Out of all the note-taking apps available to iPhone and iPad users, Apple Notes continues to gain a loyal following thanks to its simplicity, ease of use, and iCloud integration. As a result, notes taken on one Apple device will automatically sync across other devices, including MacBooks. But, what if you don’t want that?
There could be reasons behind that. Your notes are private and you don’t want family members or others to read them. Privacy is a fundamental right, digital or not. And, you don’t want them to accidentally delete them.
Apple Notes is installed on all Apple devices. So if other people using those devices have your Apple ID active on them, they can also access those Notes. Let’s see how you can stop sharing iPhone notes with your MacBook, iPad, or any other Apple device forever.
1. Lock it, forget it
With the release of iOS 9.3, a much-needed feature for Apple Notes users. Ability to lock each note with a password. Simple but effective. Once you’ve set a password, no one can access it on any Apple device without entering the password. Notes also supports biometric login which makes it a bit more secure.
To do this, go to Settings, tap Notes, and scroll down a bit to find the Password option.
You will take care of two things here. First, you will set up a password that is random and unfamiliar to other members of your family. You will then turn off the Use Touch ID option. Why? More on that below.
Now, open the notes that you want to password protect, tap the Share icon and tap Lock Notes.
Here’s what it looks like.
Remember that all your notes, password protected or not, will still be synced across devices. Users will need your password or your broken finger to access them. Also, be aware that some users share an iPad or MacBook and share biometric IDs like fingerprints and Facial Recognition (multi-user friendly).
If you have set up two different fingerprints for the same account, one for you and one for your SO, he/she can still open password protected notes. A simple solution is to turn off biometrics and depend only on the password.
2. Just keep it on my iPhone
Apple has provided ways to protect your notes. The On My iPhone option, when enabled, localizes all notes in the selected folder and prevents it from syncing with other Apple devices.
Go to Settings and tap Notes. Scroll a bit to find the On My iPhone Account option.
If you’re using iCloud and signed in, this option can be turned off. Otherwise, this option will be enabled by default. Apple uses iCloud to sync data across devices, which brings us to the last tip.
Go back to Notes and try creating a new folder. You’ll have the choice to create and keep an On My iPhone folder or in iCloud. All notes in that folder will follow the same rule. Gives you more options when using Notes with family members.
As you must have noticed, it automatically creates a new default Notes folder in On My iPhone, but you can create additional folders as you like.
3. Stop syncing with iCloud
As noted earlier, Apple uses iCloud to sync notes and other data across Apple’s entire system. That means if you stop syncing Apple’s Notes app with iCloud, no notes will ever leave your device.
When you turn off iCloud sync for Notes, you’ll see an option to turn off syncing for your iPad, Mac, and any other devices you’ve synced with the same Apple ID.
Go to Settings, tap your name, and then select iCloud.
When you turn off iCloud sync, you’ll see a pop-up reminding you that doing so will delete all the notes that have been synced in iCloud. The notes will be deleted from your device, not from iCloud. Don’t work there.
Make sure to save important notes in a local folder before you continue. To do so, go back to the Notes app, swipe left on each note you want to save locally, and tap the folder option.
You can now choose to save that note to a local folder. Repeat these steps for all other notes.
Also, keep in mind that if you want to be selective about the notes you want to sync, you’ll have to keep iCloud sync turned on and use the second option discussed above instead.
What about backups? If you’re storing notes locally and iCloud backup is turned on, all your notes will be stored in the cloud but won’t appear on other Apple devices.
You can also use iTunes to back up all your notes to your laptop or desktop computer.
Note it down
Apple Notes often get less credit than it deserves. Sure it lacks all the bells and whistles, but Apple never wanted that. Apple is known for making apps that work, follow the principle of minimalism, and provide plenty of options for managing settings.
Next up: Looking for more note taking apps? Something more than Apple Notes but not so much? I recommend checking out the article linked below that discusses Google Keep. Another minimalist note taking app.
Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/
