Locked homescreen. Don't know passcode.

My son's phone is locked. He doesn't remember the passcode to get into the phone. We have to turn in the phone because he bought a new one. The carrier won't take it back because they can't get into the phone. Any ideas to get into the phone without the passcode? We went to the apple store and they said there was nothing they could do on their end?

Posted on Nov 3, 2026 7:20 PM

1 reply

Limnos

Level 10 (462,771 points)

Nov 3, 2026 7:43 PM in response to eland0925

If it is simply a matter of a forgotten passcode then refer to this support article for various methods that you can use to resolve this. --> https://support.apple.com/105090 Which one you can use depends upon your equipment configuration. If you can use the iOS15.2+ method you may not need a computer. If you prefer to watch a video about this go to this web site https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0ULNMLj8sM

However, if Apple is saying that there is nothing they can do about it then I suspect that there is more going on with it that you haven't shared with us yet. Do you see any message about Activation Lock or Locked To Owner? If yes then refer to this: https://support.apple.com/108934