Lock chat in ChatGPT: what it hides and what it doesn't
ChatGPT can now lock a chat behind a 4-digit account PIN. OpenAI's help page says locked chats are hidden "from your regular chat history, pinned chats, and regular conversation search." That's useful when you share your screen at work. The catch: forget the PIN and the only way back in is a reset, which permanently deletes every locked chat.
What it hides
The chat leaves your regular history, pinned chats and search.
You find it under Projects > Locked chats, and open it with your 4-digit PIN (or Face ID, Touch ID or device unlock on supported phones).
What it doesn't do
It isn't encrypted. OpenAI's page says it doesn't "create end-to-end encryption or a separate encrypted vault."
It doesn't change how long OpenAI keeps the chat.
It doesn't override your company's policies or legal and compliance obligations. On Enterprise and Edu, locked chats still show up in the Compliance Platform's message logs.
It doesn't delete a shared link. If you shared the chat before, delete the link separately.
The two catches
Lock a chat inside a project and it leaves the project. It stops using that project's instructions, files and memory.
Resetting a forgotten PIN deletes every locked chat. Forgetting it doesn't delete anything by itself, but the reset does, and OpenAI Support can't recover them. Your workspace admin can't reset your PIN or unlock your chats for you.
How to lock one
Open the chat's more options menu (•••).
Select Lock chat, then Lock chat again to confirm.
Create your 4-digit PIN when asked (the first time only).
Changing the PIN (Settings > Security and login > Account PIN) keeps your locked chats. Only a reset deletes them.
The mistake to avoid
Locking something before you've saved the PIN. Put it in your password manager first.
Locked chats are rolling out gradually, so you may not see Lock chat yet.