Key Notes
- OpenAI is gradually rolling out locked chats across free and paid ChatGPT plans, letting users keep selected conversations away from ordinary history and search.
- New information remembered inside locked chats stays separate from regular conversations, while information remembered before locking is not automatically removed.
- Locking a conversation does not change retention or training settings, and resetting a forgotten account PIN permanently deletes protected chats and related content.
OpenAI is rolling out locked chats in ChatGPT, letting people hide selected conversations behind an extra authentication step without deleting them. The feature moves chats out of ordinary history, pinned conversations and search, making it easier to keep personal discussions away from an otherwise visible account.
The October 20 release notes confirm a gradual rollout to Free, Go, Plus and Pro across the web, mobile apps and the new desktop app. Access uses a four-digit account PIN, with Face ID, Touch ID or supported device unlock also available on mobile. A paid subscription is not required, although the option may not appear for every account immediately.
A Private Discussion Can Stay Out of the Sidebar
To start, open an eligible conversation’s options menu and choose Lock chat. Protected conversations are accessed through Projects > Locked chats. This addresses a familiar problem: someone can want to keep a conversation for later without having its title appear while showing a colleague a work question.
OpenAI’s feature guide says authentication grants temporary access. Users can end it with Lock now; simply opening a regular conversation does not necessarily end that access. Other open devices may also need to refresh before a newly locked chat disappears from view.
Locked Does Not Mean Memory-Free
The memory behavior is more nuanced than saying ChatGPT forgets hidden conversations. With Memory enabled, locked chats can draw on regular remembered information and remember new details for other locked chats. Those newly remembered details do not carry into ordinary conversations.
Locking an existing discussion also does not erase information remembered before it was locked. OpenAI’s memory documentation says the full conversation may become available for regular Memory after permanent unlocking, depending on settings and workspace policies. People trying to remove an older personal detail should review saved memories and its original sources separately.
That distinction matters as AI products remember more about their users. Our coverage of OpenAI Dots explored the value of persistent context for delegated work. The same convenience creates a need to control which information follows someone between tasks.
The Lock Leaves Other Privacy Settings in Place
Locked chats do not add end-to-end encryption, shorten retention or switch off model training. Existing shared links also remain accessible for previously shared content. There is a particularly consequential recovery rule: resetting a forgotten PIN permanently deletes locked chats and content protected only by that PIN. Changing a known PIN does not have that effect.
Model improvement remains a separate choice. Under OpenAI’s data controls, turning off Improve the model for everyone stops new conversations from being used to train its models. Memory controls personalization; training controls govern a different use of the information. Hiding a title from the sidebar answers neither question by itself.
Organizations have additional rules. The workspace announcement confirms support for Enterprise and Edu, while retention requirements still apply and conversation logs remain available through the Compliance Platform. A lock on the interface should not be mistaken for exemption from an employer’s policies.
When Temporary Chat Is the Better Fit
For a conversation someone does not want to keep, Temporary Chat serves a different purpose. While temporary, it stays out of history, does not create or update memories and is not used to improve models. Existing personalization can be enabled or disabled before starting, and OpenAI may retain a copy for up to 30 days for safety.
Locked chats fill the space between an openly visible saved conversation and a temporary exchange. They give users a way to return to sensitive discussions with an additional access check. Their usefulness depends on understanding that access, memory and data use are separate controls, each governing a different part of the experience.
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