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apple store update apps issue

Good day to you all.

I reach out for support in how to resolve the following issue.

when I open my apple App store app on my personal i-phone, it correctly shows i am signed in with my personal email account, which matches my settings>apple account.

The issue is, when i go to app updates within the app store it is asking me to sign in to enable the apps that need updating to be updated....but, above the password section it has a fixed email account that i cannot change/overwrite, that is an old work email that is no longer active (i left that company years ago!).

This old email is nowhere to be seen in my apple account settings, so i have no idea where it is held & how to remove it...and more importantly, how i can overcome this app update issue defaulting to an unchangeable email account.

1 reply

The situation you describe often happens if there are apps (or media purchases) on the device that were installed (or downloaded) under a different Apple ID/account, and they need updating or redownloading. This can sometimes happen if a device was not properly reset by a previous owner, or if you incorrectly "change" your ID by creating a brand new Apple account instead of as in: Change your Apple Account primary email address - Apple Support


Purchases can now be migrated from one account to another but that requires certain conditions which you may not be able to achieve. See Migrate purchases from one Apple Account to another Apple Account - Apple Support

and About migrating Apple Account purchases between accounts - Apple Support


The best way to resolve this is to delete the item(s) requesting the update, and then download it again using the Apple ID that is signed in with the device. If you do not know which apps these are, change to manually updating apps on your device (see How to manually update apps from the App Store - Apple Support ). Go through your app list and update them one by one. The problems apps will prompt for a different account.


You may end up losing some data if the data are associated with a particular Apple Account.


These steps from "Delete apps on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch" [at: Delete apps on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support ] will help you remove the app:


How to delete an app

1. Touch and hold the app.

2. Tap Remove App [the "-" icon]. Remove App is the third option in the menu.

3. Tap Delete App, then tap Delete to confirm.

Keep in mind that some built-in Apple apps can't be deleted from your device, so you might not see the option to delete an app. Here’s a list of built-in Apple apps you can delete from your device [at: Delete built-in Apple apps from your iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch - Apple Support ]. If you can't delete an app that's not made by Apple, disable parental controls [see: Set up parental controls to manage your child's iPhone or iPad - Apple Support ], then try deleting the app again.


If you touch and hold an app from the Home Screen and the apps start to jiggle:

1. Tap the Remove icon in the upper-left corner of the app. (There's also an Add button in the top left corner of the screen and a Done button in the top right corner of the screen.)

2. Tap Delete App, then tap Delete to confirm.

3. Tap Done.


Once deleted, adding the app using the correct Apple ID should resolve the issue. See the article: Download apps and games on your iPhone or iPad [ Download apps on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support ]