Password protecting grouped apps on iphones

As the others have said, there is no way to lock a group of apps. You can lock individual apps:

Lock or hide an app on iPhone - Apple Support

but if a given app is for a service that already requires a user account and password, locking the app itself is probably an unnecessary extra step. As Carol said, make sure that you use a strong password, do not reuse passwords on multiple sites, and opt into two-factor authentication where offered, especially for financial accounts.

Regards.

JitP wrote:

Hi Idris. On your q on a specific fingerprint/passcode, I am thinking of after the iphone has been compromised - ie the iphone has been stolen and the thief has been able to obtain your passcode. This has been reported in numerous newspaper reports where the iphone has been targeted and stalked ahead of the actual theft.

Which is exactly why Apple has added Stolen Device Protection in Settings/Security & Privacy. When you turn it on no security settings on the phone or your Apple ID can be changed without biometric verification (Face ID or Touch ID), and you can only turn off Stolen Device Protection with biometric verification. And just about all critical apps such as banking apps require either biometrics or a password on every access.

There is no way to do that ... at least none I'm aware of. The best thing to do is make sure you use a passcode on your iPhone and a good, strong password on your banking app.

JitP wrote:

Thanks Carol - lets see if Apple follow this up as a possible iphone product enhancement. I am also thinking that perhaps you are able to assign a specific fingerprint (as opposed to all stored) as a back-up feature.

It's not clear to me why you would need a different fingerprint/passcode from the one locking your phone.

You can add additional protection to your device using Stolen Device Protection:

About Stolen Device Protection for iPhone - Apple Support

You can also let Apple know what you'd like to see here:

Product Feedback - Apple

JitP wrote:

Hi Idris. On your q on a specific fingerprint/passcode, I am thinking of after the iphone has been compromised - ie the iphone has been stolen and the thief has been able to obtain your passcode. This has been reported in numerous newspaper reports where the iphone has been targeted and stalked ahead of the actual theft.

Current iphone security protocols allow you to add additional face ids/fingerprints at any time using your passcode and with the ability to lock app groups with a passcode or a specific fingerprint id means the thief needs to use the pre-specified id to unlock the group of apps. It is just another layer of security protection for our devices, especially as we are becoming more reliant on them for everyday use.

Also, thank you for the links to the product feedback feature.

You can sign out of your banking accounts and not store the passcodes on the phone. All of my financial apps auto-log out. Yes, this will require you to remember your credentials. It certainly wouldn't be worth it to me given that, despite what the news would have you believe, this isn't all that common.