Do You Need an Account to Use Mavaul, and How Do You Unlock It?

Updated

No. Mavaul does not require an account, sign-up, or login. You unlock the vault on your own device using Face ID or a passcode you set yourself. Because there is no account, there is no username, email, or password tied to a server — the unlock step happens on your phone, not in the cloud.

Why there is no account

Mavaul is described as a private vault for photos and videos that uses AES-256 encryption on your phone, with no account and no cloud by default. The design choice matters for two reasons:

  • Less personal data exposed. With no account, there is no email address, phone number, or profile stored with a service to link back to you.
  • Unlocking stays local. Face ID or your passcode is checked on the device, so access does not depend on a remote login.

The site's own framing is blunt about this: encryption happens on-device, and "not even we can peek."

How unlocking works

The unlock flow is built around two options, both handled on your device:

  1. Face ID — biometric unlock, using the face recognition already set up on your phone.
  2. Passcode — a code you create for the vault, used when you prefer not to or cannot use Face ID.

In practice, you open the app, authenticate with one of these, and the vault contents become visible. There is no separate "create account" or "sign in" step in between.

What this means day to day

Situation What you do
Opening the vault normally Unlock with Face ID
Face ID unavailable (mask, angle, wet hands) Enter your passcode
New phone You would restore from an encrypted backup rather than log into an account

Common points to check before relying on it

  • Your passcode is the fallback, so don't lose it. Since there is no account recovery through a login, the passcode is the practical backup to Face ID. Treat it as something you need to remember.
  • No account does not automatically mean no cloud. The site says "no cloud by default," and separately lists an Encrypted Backup feature. If you turn backup on, understand where that backup goes before assuming everything stays only on the phone.
  • Free to download is not the same as fully free. The site states the app is free to download and links to a separate pricing page, so check that page for what is paid.

Quick answer

You can use Mavaul without creating an account, and you unlock it with Face ID or a passcode on your device. If you want the full picture of what is free versus paid, see the pricing page at mavaul.com/pricing/.