It is not unusual for Apple users to contact us after forgetting their iPhone password. It can be something as simple and as unlikely as forgetting your password or it can be something more probable like a child repeatedly pressing in the incorrect password. Repetitively entering the incorrect password can result in the loss of all your data.
So what do you need to do if you forget your password? Here are a few steps you can take to ensure your contacts, apps, photos and more do not disappear:
- Manage your passwords
Unfortunately, and ironically, you need a password to restore your iPhone after repeatedly failing to input the correct password after six attempts. Don’t despair. You don’t need to rely on your memory (especially if it failed on you in the password attempts in the first place). You can download a password manager to ensure your back-up password for restoring your iPhone is safe in an encrypted vault.
- Back Up
There really is no excuse to not back up your data to iTunes. If you didn’t know, iTunes is more than just a music app. It is also a ‘filing cabinet’ for all media. To back up your iPhone data to iTunes, click here. Not in favour of iTunes? You can back up your device to iCloud, click here. Alternatively, you can back your iPhone up to an external drive, click here.
- Erase and recover
If you backed up with iTunes, you only need to plug in your iPhone to the computer and then sync it with iTunes. Go to Files -> Devices -> Restore from backup. By looking at the size and date of the saved backups, you can choose which one you want to use to restore your iPhone. Your device needs to remain plugged in until the process is completed. If you backed up to iCloud, you will need to sign into a Wi-Fi network, then into iCloud, and then you have to select the option, “Restore from an iCloud Backup”. Once you slect the appropriate backup file, the process will automatically begin. Once again you need to ensure that your device is plugged in until the process is completed.
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