Losing someone is a traumatic experience, and so you lot don't desire to add the potential frustration and distress of being unable to access important data or content that has get imprisoned on their iPhone, iPad or Mac. But how tin you unlock an iPhone in one case the owner has passed away? Here are a few things you can try, plus details of Apple's new Digital Legacy initiative that should make the process much easier.

What is Apple tree's Digital Legacy feature?

At WWDC 2021, Apple announced that as part of its new iCloud+ service that volition supervene upon the standard iCloud subscription in iOS 15, iPadOS15 and macOS Monterey, a new feature chosen Digital Legacy will get standard (although this won't be available straight after Monterey launches - Apple tree is proverb it will get in "afterward this twelvemonth"). Once information technology arrives it volition let users to nominate specific users who tin can asking all the data stored in their iCloud account, which will exist made available if they should die. The process seems straight forrad.

  1. From your iCloud account you lot tin add together a Legacy Contact.

    How to unlock an iPhone, iPad or Mac when owner dies: Add contact

  2. In the unfortunate effect of your decease, that person can then request admission to your Apple ID, although it will require a copy of your expiry document to prove they are eligible.

    How to unlock an iPhone, iPad or Mac when the owner dies: Request access

  3. When Apple confirms the condition of the device's owner, information technology will then grant the nominated person access to the deceased's data as well as disabling the Activation Lock on their iPhone, iPad or Mac.

Of course, to use this service, once information technology is available, you'll need to exist running iOS 15, iPadOS 15 or macOS Monterey on your device.

How to access a deceased person's iPhone or Mac device

While we are awaiting the launch of Digital Legacy, or if you do not take the option to upgrade, y'all tin apply one of the following methods to try to recover the information from a deceased person's device:

Recover data via iCloud

If you know the login details for the person'due south iCloud account or have access to their iCloud electronic mail accost, then you lot should be able to utilize it to recover a large amount of information. Provided the person in question used the service, it volition give you the chance to download photos, documents, contacts and other files.

  1. Get to iCloud.com.
  2. Select the Forgotten your Apple ID or Password? choice.
  3. Utilize the iCloud email address to reset the iCloud password.

How to unlock an iPhone, iPad or Mac when owner dies: iCloud Password

Recover information on iPhone and iPad by restoring an iCloud backup

Another choice, which in one case again requires y'all to have access to the deceased'south iCloud account, is to wipe their device and restore a contempo iCloud fill-in. The reason for using the restore method is that you should still accept all of the information left intact, simply the Activation Code on their device volition exist reset, allowing you to admission the iPhone or iPad.

Before you attempt this, try to ascertain the last time the device was backed up, as you wouldn't want to erase the data only to find that the backup is from a couple of years ago. If there is a contempo ane, follow the instructions outlined in how to restore an iPhone or iPad from an iCloud or iTunes backup.

What to do if you don't know the deceased person'south iCloud details

Sadly, this is probably a probable scenario for many people. All that you tin do in this event is to contact Apple Back up or visit your local Apple tree Store and explain the situation. Hopefully the people there volition be able to help you lot gain admission to the data stored on the iPhone, iPad or Mac.

Evidently, when the Digital Legacy feature arrives subsequently in 2021 this should brand the process far easier, although it will withal be necessary for the Digital Legacy feature to be set up by the owner of the iPhone, but until then you'll need to rely on Apple being able to aid yous through this difficult fourth dimension.

The key have away is to program for these deplorable events past finding out these essential passwords in accelerate. But that is, of form, easier said than washed.

Any decease can likewise accept a financial impact, then if you decide that you desire to movement on the device once you've salvaged the data, read our guides on how to sell your iPhone for the best price, how to sell a Mac and how to sell an iPad.