What happens when you get locked out of your iPhone? Whether you forget your 6-digit keys, your swipe password, or you can’t access other logins, the whole situation can be messy. It sometimes will require you to visit an Apple customer care shop to have your phone unlocked – after providing the required details. However, there are many other ways you can use to gain access to your device. Here is what you can do when locked out.
Determine If you are Really Locked Out
Sometimes, the locking out can be temporary, especially if you put the wrong password six times or when the device notices suspicious activity. So if you haven’t forgotten the password completely, the phone will give you a few seconds or minutes to unlock it again using your password. On your sixth attempt, the phone will lock you out for one minute, while on the 7th attempt, you’ll be locked for five minutes. However, when you attempt unlocking it for the tenth time, you might be forced to find other ways of unlocking your phone as it stays forever. Therefore, before trying other means, you can try putting the password you remember and see if you can unlock your phone.
Bypass the Activation Lock
When you have reached the limit of logging in to your iPhone, the phone will give you an unlimited number of hours which you will have to wait until you can put in your password again. Mostly, these minutes will take forever, meaning you have entirely been locked out of your device. When such happens, one way you can unlock your phone is to bypass iCloud activation lock, which works best on all Apple devices, including iPhones, iPods, Apple Watches, and iPod Touch. The process will involve using an iCloud activation lock or using iCloud bypass software to unlock your phone. The software and the process will try bypassing the locking system, enabling you to gain access to your iPhone again.
Ask the Original Owner to Remove the Activation Lock
Due to the high costs, many people do not buy brand-new iPhone devices. They either buy second-hand ones or, at times, get gifted the devices by their friends or family members. If you own a second-hand iPhone and are locked out, you can reach out to the original owner to remove the activation lock. Removing the activation lock can be done remotely, meaning you don’t have to travel or reach the owner physically. Here, the original owners will have to log in to their iCloud account and remove the device from the account without physically accessing it. So, if you got an iPhone as a present from someone in a different country, you can still use it by telling them to unlock it for you. There is also a way to unlock iPhone with Apple Watch, see how.
Ask Apple to Remove The Activation Lock
After trying the processes listed above, and nothing seems to work, you can directly contact the Apple team and ask them to remove the iCloud activation lock. In this method, you are required to prove if you are the actual owner of the device. Therefore, you have to show proof of purchase or the ownership of the phone if you got it from someone else. Probably this is done by the company to know if you acquired the device legally. Before unlocking your device, the Apple team will check on their system to see if the device is blocked by someone else before unlocking it for you. The team will not unlock any device reported as missing or stolen, and they might end up blocking the device entirely if they find that you acquired it illegally.
Plan for Next Time
After unlocking your device, you will have to take measures not to get locked out again in the future. Of course, you can’t leave your device password-free as the wrong hands can pick it, which will compromise your data. Therefore, you need to create a simple yet difficult-to-guess password and backup your phone so that you won’t lose your data when you get locked out or when the device gets stolen. You can set up an automatic device backup or activate other means of accessing your phone, including face and Touch ID, making it easier to access your phone when you forget the password. You also need to note that you won’t access some apps on your device without a password. Therefore, create a password you can easily remember. Getting locked out of your iPhone can be embarrassing and also inconvenient. As much as you remember your password, there comes a time when you get locked out of your device. When such happens, one of the above methods will help gain access to your iPhone. Ensure that you are unlocking a device you acquired legally.
