3 key Privacy Display features on the Galaxy S26 Ultra

The Galaxy S26 Ultra introduces several new features, but there’s one that stands out: it has the world’s first built-in Privacy Display^[1] on mobile.

You no longer need third-party privacy screen protectors. Samsung has built this capability directly into the device, helping keep your screen content less visible to people around you.

When Privacy Display is enabled, the screen becomes harder to read from side angles, making it more difficult for others nearby to see what’s on your display. Samsung also allows you to customize how the feature behaves, giving users several ways to tailor it to different situations.

There are three key Privacy Display features to know if you want to get the most out of it: Maximum Privacy Protection, automatic activation, and notification-only privacy.

You can turn on Privacy Display from the phone’s display settings. To enable it, go to Settings > Display > Privacy Display and switch the feature on.

You can also enable it from the Quick Panel. Swipe down from the top of the screen twice to expand the panel, then tap the Privacy Display toggle.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra includes a Maximum Privacy Protection mode that strengthens the privacy effect even further. When enabled, the display becomes significantly harder to read from the side than with the standard Privacy Display mode.

This setting is useful in crowded environments where someone may be sitting close enough to still glimpse parts of the screen with normal privacy settings enabled.

Maximum Privacy Protection is strong enough that the display is only easy to read when viewed directly head-on. Because of this, it works best in situations where you want the highest level of privacy, such as when checking sensitive information or using banking apps.

You can enable Maximum Privacy Protection from Settings > Display > Privacy Display. Alternatively, swipe down from the top of the screen twice to expand the Quick Panel, long-press the Privacy Display toggle, and turn the option on from there.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra allows you to control when Privacy Display activates through a set of customizable conditions. Instead of enabling the feature manually every time, you can configure it to turn on automatically in certain situations.

For example, Privacy Display can activate when opening selected apps, or when entering authentication details such as a PIN, password, or pattern. This helps ensure that sensitive information is harder to view from side angles at the moments when privacy matters most.

If you want the feature to activate when specific apps are opened or when you enter your PIN or password, go to Settings > Display > Privacy Display > Conditions for turning on > Apps, then use the toggles to select the desired apps.

For applying privacy display automatically when entering PINs, patterns, and passwords, enable the PIN, pattern, password option in Settings > Display > Privacy Display > Conditions for turning on.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra also includes an option that applies Privacy Display only to notification pop-ups. When this setting is enabled, the privacy effect applies only to the notification itself, while the rest of the screen remains unchanged.

This means people around you will have a harder time reading incoming messages or alerts from side angles, but you can still view the rest of your screen normally.

This option can be useful if you want extra privacy for notifications without enabling Privacy Display for the entire display. You can enable it from Settings > Display > Privacy Display > Conditions for turning on.

^{[1] Privacy Display: Requires manual activation in settings to function. Privacy Display feature is not AI-powered.}