Purchasing a new iPhone from an official retailer makes a rather serious hole in the budget of a domestic user, so many prefer to look for cheaper options on the secondary market or from “gray” suppliers. Naturally, it would be a good idea to check such a device before purchasing.
What is noteworthy is that the fears of buyers of used or “gray” smartphones are completely justified. For example, the seller may claim that the device is not tied to the operator’s contract, but in fact, after flashing the iPhone, it will refuse to accept a SIM card and turn into a media player; in other cases, scammers do not unlink the device from the Apple ID account and subsequently block it remotely, demanding additional money. These and other nuances can be checked by the serial number, even without having the iPhone itself in hand.
How to find out IMEI and serial number of iPhone
You can find the serial number of your iPhone and iPad on the original box (on the back), in the iOS settings (Settings -> General -> About this device) or in iTunes.
ATTENTION:
- Apple device serial numbers may contain the number "0" (zero), but never contain the letter "O".
- If you cannot open the Settings menu, you can call the IMEI/MEID code instead of the serial number to get support
Lock your smartphone for security purposes
There are often situations in which the phone is automatically blocked if its owner has not entered the security code. How to find out iCloud on a locked iPhone? There are two ways to do this. Both are pretty simple. The user can call technical support (as stated above), give their full name, year of birth and additionally the last eight digits of the iPhone serial number. This number cannot be viewed if the smartphone is locked, but it can always be found on the box of the purchased device under the barcode called IMEI1. For this reason, we recommend that all owners do not throw away boxes of purchased products, as this can lead to unpleasant consequences. The box will not take up much space, but will significantly speed up password recovery in case you forget or enter it incorrectly.
What can you check using your iPhone serial number?
Linking the device to iCloud (Apple ID) - Activation Lock status
As of January 28, 2021, the iCloud page (icloud.com/activationlock/), where you could check the activation lock status, stopped opening. In addition, links to this service have disappeared from the Apple technical support site. Apparently, the page was deleted by the company itself, without disclosing the reasons.
Find My iPhone includes Activation Lock to prevent someone else from using your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Apple Watch if it's lost or stolen. Activation Lock is enabled automatically when Find My iPhone is enabled (In iOS 6 - iOS 10.2.1: Settings -> iCloud -> Find iPhone; In iOS 10.3 and later: Settings -> Apple ID -> iCloud -> Find iPhone).
When Activation Lock is enabled, a third party will need to enter the device owner's Apple ID and password to disable Find My iPhone, delete data, reactivate, and use the gadget.
This measure allows you to protect the device if it falls into the wrong hands and increases the chances of its return. Even if the user remotely deletes all data from the device, Activation Lock will prevent unauthorized reactivation.
ON TOPIC: How to check whether you bought a new iPhone (activated or not)?
What is iCloud and how to use it?
iCloud is a synonym for AppleID. For a simpler concept, you need to go a little deeper into the details. Every smartphone sold these days has its own “identifier,” that is, a name registered in the system to identify the user. All modern phones have this name, regardless of the company. The most common are Google Play and AppStore. There is also a Windows Phone service, but today such devices are no longer produced, and if you manage to find them for sale on the Internet, they will be used phones or leftovers lying around in warehouses.
Registration on such services is mandatory for the user of any platform. If you do not pass it, a person simply will not be able to use a smartphone. It is registration that makes it possible to install the necessary applications, learn about the latest news, and even just use mail. By registering himself in one of the systems described above, the owner of the phone receives full support from official representatives of a particular company, as well as the right to free technical support if he encounters any problems.
What to do if you lose your device?
If your device is lost or stolen, you must immediately put it in lost mode in Find My iPhone. This mode locks your screen with a 6 or 4 digit passcode and displays a message with your phone number to make returning your device easier.
If necessary, you can remotely erase data from the device; the message will remain on the screen even after the information is deleted. While Activation Lock works in the shadows to prevent unauthorized use or sale of the device, Lost Mode reminds the finder (or stealer) that the gadget has an owner and cannot be used without knowing the password.
To turn on Lost Mode, visit icloud.com/find from a Mac or PC, or use the Find My iPhone app for iOS.
Take control of access to your device to prevent foul play
Like this! This way, you can enhance the security of your iDevice to block unauthorized access. This is simply checking the basics and ensuring that all the security measures in place are active. Now that you know how to protect your device, here are some tips for keeping your personal information safe.
You may also want to read these articles about iOS 14 privacy:
By the way, do you have any questions or feedback? Be sure to shoot in the comments below.
Should I turn off Find My iPhone before transferring my device to another owner?
Before passing the gadget into other hands, you need to disable the functionality so that a new user can activate and use the device. The best way to do this is to sign out of iCloud and then delete all data and settings on the device. Next, turn off Find My iPhone and remove the device from your Apple ID account.
1. Click “Settings” -> iCloud;
2. Scroll down, click “Exit” and confirm by clicking the button again;
In iOS 10.3 and later: Settings -> Apple ID -> iCloud -> Find iPhone.
3. Click “Delete from iPhone” and enter your password;
4. Return to “Settings”;
5. Click “General” -> “Reset” -> “Erase content and settings”.
How to register?
After purchasing the phone and turning it on for the first time, the user will immediately receive an offer to register in the system. It is recommended to use your real first and last name, since otherwise it will be impossible to identify the person and, accordingly, you will not have to count on any technical support. This is especially true for owners of smartphones from Apple. So, having entered your first and last name, you will need to come up with a password to enter the branded service. Experts recommend using a password with small, capital letters and always numbers. This is necessary to prevent attackers and various types of scammers from obtaining the personal data of the smartphone owner. This should not be neglected, since currently the vast majority of users have bank cards and various payment services linked to their account.
How to check for Activation Lock when purchasing a used device?
If you purchased an iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Apple Watch other than from an Apple store or authorized point of sale, make sure that all information is deleted from the device and that the device itself is not linked to the previous owner's account. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Turn on and try to unlock the device;
2. If you see a password prompt on the lock screen or Home screen, your data has not been deleted. Ask the seller to completely erase the data: “General” -> “Reset” -> “Erase content and settings” (details).
Don't buy a used iPhone, iPad or iPod touch until it's been erased;
3. Start the device setup process;
4. After selecting your language, region, country and network connection, device activation will begin. If a request for the password and ID of the previous owner appears on the screen, it means that the device is still linked to his account. Return the device to the seller and ask him to enter your password. If the previous owner cannot be reached, he can remove the link to the account via icloud.com/find.
If you see a setup prompt after you turn on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch for the first time and connect to the Internet, the device is ready to use.
Activation Lock is only supported on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch running iOS 7 or later, and Apple Watch running watchOS2 or later.
ON TOPIC: How to activate and set up a new iPhone.
ATTENTION:
Never buy an iPhone with your Apple ID entered in Settings -> iCloud and Find My iPhone enabled!
It should not be:
It should be like this:
When purchasing, be sure to ask the seller to reset the device to factory settings and delete data (Settings -> General -> Reset -> Erase content and settings) (instructions) in your presence. Then, again in your presence, ask the seller to activate the iPhone and go through the initial setup without entering your Apple ID (detailed instructions).
ON THIS TOPIC:
- How to properly sign out of iCloud on iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch.
- How to track your friends' location (Find Friends) on icloud.com.
- Protecting Apple ID from hacking, or how to distinguish real Apple emails from fake ones.
Guarantee
If the seller claims that the iPhone was recently purchased and is eligible for free warranty service, then this is quite easy to verify. Again, you need to use a special section of the Apple website (link), where you just need to enter the iPhone serial number. The service will indicate the date of purchase of the device and the remaining period of free warranty service.
Other recovery methods
There are other alternative methods of action in the above situations. For example, users are interested in how to find out iCloud by phone number. This method also requires minimal steps. In such a situation, you need to click the button located just below the password entry field called “Forgot your password?”. Clicking it will open a specialized menu from which the user can select a password recovery method using the number specified when registering the product. A unique six-digit SMS code will be sent to the specified phone number, after entering which the service will automatically reset the old password and immediately prompt the owner to create a new one. We provided instructions for creating reliable protection above.
Several actions to determine whether the lock is activated on an iPhone
You can access the section we are interested in via iCloud on your iPhone.
In the line provided, write the code or serial number of the device. Then the system will prompt you to enter a captcha, then select “Continue”.
The system will display a locked status. If your fears are justified, a series of instructions will appear on your locked smartphone to solve this problem.
It must be remembered that on some new devices, blocking is enabled initially, that is, by default.
Other ways to deauthorize Apple equipment
Other methods of “unlinking” an iPhone, iPad or iPod from iCloud are not entirely legal. For example, if a device is lost, and the person who found it, instead of returning it to its previous owner, activated the gadget using “gray” methods, he may be held accountable for fraud. In addition, Apple device hacks (computer programs that exploit iOS vulnerabilities) usually do not work for long because Apple patches these vulnerabilities with each subsequent iOS update. So it is better not to resort to such means.
By following exactly all the steps to “unlink” your iPhone, iPad or iPod strictly according to the instructions given above, you can easily sell or gift the gadget to another person.
Interaction with Apple iCloud: delving into the most important functions
Export contacts from Apple devices
Unbinding check
You need to check your iPhone before purchasing so as not to look for ways to solve the login problem. One of the important steps is to check whether the iPhone is unlinked from iCloud:
- Go to settings.
- Select the iCloud line.
- View the Find My iPhone option. The button must be disabled.
Attention! When the function is disabled, the system displays a line for registering with an Apple ID. A new user can activate it and track the device using a map if it gets lost
So, disconnecting your iPhone from cloud storage without a password is possible. It is best to ask the seller to clean the phone before selling it to avoid problems later.
Small addition
There are a few more tricks to find out your iCloud. To view your own ID, you can go to the AppStore and go to your profile by clicking on the corresponding button. The Mail application, installed on all Apple smartphones by default, is also ideal for this. When you open this program, the device owner will immediately see his email address in the Apple system, which is similar to the user’s personal ID. On Mac OS laptops, you can also find it by going to the AppStore or opening computer properties through the Finder menu. So, we have described in detail how to find out your iCloud on possible Apple devices.
If a person uses a tablet from this company, the recovery algorithm is similar to the recovery method on a smartphone. It is worth remembering that Apple reliably protects your data, so you should be careful when registering a new product to avoid unpleasant situations.
How to clean a place
You can free up storage space by deleting unnecessary videos and photos. You need to delete them from all albums, including “Recently Deleted”. The last step can be omitted, since after 40 days the device will automatically delete them from memory. In addition to media library data, the iCloud service can store device backups, notes, documents and other files.
To free up space in the cloud, you can also delete them; to do this, go to the iCloud management section in the “General” tab in the device settings. If you have already deleted everything unnecessary, but there is still not enough space, then you can transfer all the iCloud data to your computer, and then to any other media. To do this, log into iCloud from your personal computer at https://icloud.com and download all the files to your computer’s hard drive, then delete this data from the cloud.
What is Apple ID
An Apple ID account is created separately for each device. This is an account that provides access to all services of the manufacturer’s company. Registration is very quick - you specify your Gmail mailbox and create a password.
Main features available after creating an account:
- Installing applications from the App Store.
- Downloading content from iTunes.
- Using iCloud - “cloud” for data storage.
- Creating and restoring backups.
- Access to messengers.
- Locking your smartphone, deleting all user data on the device.
Why iCloud may run out of memory
Everything you store in the service is contained on Apple servers. Their headquarters is in North Carolina. And for all owners of Apple products there is a place in this huge space of information.
But over time, users face the problem of running out of space in this storage. It’s a surprising thing for the average person, but iCloud synchronization with your device occurs automatically when your phone is connected to a wifi network and is not used by the owner for a long time, for example: when you are sleeping.
The memory is mostly filled from your photo library. Videos are also uploaded to the cloud, freeing up the gadget’s hard drive. And if you haven’t cleared your iCloud data, then for some time, usually this happens in the second year of using the device, all the space in the cloud storage will be occupied.
