Removing An Apple ID From A Used Apple Mobile Device

Are you considering buying a used iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch? If the previous owner hasn't removed the Activation Lock from the device, then this is going to cause some problems. This article describes what you can do to remove the previous Apple ID from the device. If you have bought a device that has had this removed already, then great news! One of our previous articles, gives some information on some of the clever things that Siri can do, so please click here to read it if you haven't already.

The Activation Lock, mentioned above, is used by Apple on their iOS devices to stop unauthorised users from using the device, if it was lost or stolen for example. You may think that carrying out a factory reset may solve the problem, but unfortunately it won't because of this.

If you have bought the device privately, the best solution is to go back to the person that you bought the device from and ask them to remove the device from their associated Apple ID. This can be done by following these steps:

• Sign in to iCloud.com
• Go to Find My iPhone
• Select “All Devices” to open a list of devices linked to their account, and select the device to be removed
• Click “Remove from Account”

If you don't know who the previous owner was, if you bought it from a retailer who sells pre-owned equipment for example, then you may be out of luck. In theory Apple Stores could bypass this feature, but as it's a security feature, they may be unwilling to do it.

My advice, if you are considering buying a pre-owned piece of kit from a retailer, is to check with them that the Apple ID has been removed before you buy. A reputable dealer would normally check that this has been done with the person selling it to them anyway. The same goes for if you are buying it directly from the person who owned it previously, then you shouldn't go wrong and enjoy your new tech!