If you have an iPhone or any other Apple device, you may be familiar with the words iCloud Lock or iCloud Unlock. This feature is also known as activation lock on iPhone. As a result, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices are stuck to login to a specific iCloud account.
This iCloud lock feature is mainly provided to ensure the security of iPhone, iPad etc. devices. No one but the owner of a lost or stolen iPhone or other Apple device can use this feature.
But what if your iPhone is locked to iCloud? Let’s find out the rules for unlocking iCloud lock for iPhone and Apple devices or how to unlock iCloud.
What is iCloud Lock?
For every new iPhone setup, it is better to have an Apple ID and login to the iPhone with it. Users need an Apple ID to properly use all the services provided by Apple. You will not be able to install any app without signing in with Apple ID on iPhone.
When setting up the new iPhone, turning on the “Find My iPhone” setting, the phone’s unique details are stored on the Apple server. Then the iPhone is connected to the Apple ID.
Then if someone wants to steal or buy the phone and reset it, then activation lock will appear on the screen. Then you can’t unlock that iPhone without Apple ID password or phone passcode. In addition, the owner of the Apple ID can remotely login to the iCloud site or use the Find My App to format the phone and lock the activation.
This condition is called iCloud lock. Before buying a second hand phone, you must remove the iCloud lock from the phone and reset the phone.
The cause of iCloud lock
Many people think that activation lock means stealing the iPhone. But in reality it is not like that. Activation lock can be turned on in many ways. Reasons for iCloud Lock or Activation Lock on iPhone:
- If you do not turn off the Find My iPhone feature before resetting the phone
- If you forgot to log out of the Apple ID account before resetting the phone
- If you forget your iPhone unlock passcode and try resetting the phone in recovery mode
- When the Apple account is disabled
For the reasons mentioned, your iPhone iCloud may be locked. This problem is especially read when buying a used iPhone.
However, iCloud lock of a phone means that there is a possibility that the phone is a stolen phone. And if the person from whom you buy the iPhone actually owns it, then you can open the iCloud lock.
Before buying a used iPhone, you must log out of the iPhone seller’s Apple account from that iPhone and reset the phone. In this case, the iPhone that you are going to buy, there is no possibility of iCloud lock. The phone will not be locked to iCloud if you are not signed in to Apple ID or if the Find My iPhone feature of the iPhone is turned off.
Ways to open iCloud lock
Activation lock is mainly used to prevent mobile theft. If the Find My iPhone feature is turned on in the iPhone, this activation lock feature is turned on. Once this feature is turned on, no one outside will be able to reset the device, activate the device with another account, or turn off the Find My iPhone feature without an Apple ID username and password.
If the iPhone in your hand is locked to iCloud and you know the login details of the account logged in to your device, then you can easily get rid of iCloud lock by logging in with email / phone number and password.
If an iPhone, iPad or any other Apple device locks iCloud, the word activation lock will be written on the screen of that device. If the iPhone is activated lock, then the text Activation Lock will appear on the screen. In this case, the activation lock can be released only by signing in with Apple ID and password. That means iCloud can be unlocked. It is a very simple process.
On the Activation Lock screen, you will find another option under the Apple ID and Password field where Unlock with passcode is written. In other words, if you know the passcode of the phone through this option, you can also open the activation lock with that passcode.
if you don’t know Apple ID, password or passcode?
If you do not know the login information of your Apple account, you can reset it using another device. You can also unlock iCloud by resetting the password using the same iCloud account logged in to another device. To reset iCloud password from logged in phone:
- Enter the phone’s Settings app
- Tap on the account name
- Tap on Password and Security
- Click on Change Password and reset the password following the next instructions shown on the screen.
You can also change your Apple ID password by visiting the https://iforgot.apple.com/password/verify/appleid link through the browser from another device. Then you can unlock the activation lock.
