Archive. This is an archive of the Apple Support Community. Discussions are being restored and soon you will be able to read and post here again.
HelpNeededPlease1
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

iPhone fraudulently enrolled in MDM causing privacy concerns

I have had four iphone 15s through Verizon, one iphone 16 through AT&T and two Androids through TMobile, all fraudulently enrolled in mdms.


I had privacy concerns with my iphones for many years. Finally, I ordered my data from Apple. My device was referred to as an Educational Enterprise Device. My devices were all fraudulently enrolled into an MDM.


The devices are supervised, therefore the MDM profile is hidden from me.


I emailed the part if my data that referred to my device as Educational Enterprise to Customer Support. I was told that I may want to contact The Security Research Team. They have nothing to do with this.


I contacted Apple Support many times (useless). I reached out to their executive team (no response) and emailed the privacy department (referred me back to customer support).


Apple allows companies and schools to enroll devices without the customer ever touching the device. They are pre-configured right out of the box (mine were).


Apple sells itself on being privacy focused. If they are going to let an entity pre-configure the device and place it in supervised mode (where there doesn't need to be an MDM profile), they should help those that become fraudulently enrolled through no fault if their own.


My calls, texts, emails, browsing and location histories have been monitored by an unknown entity for years. So much for privacy. I guess selling a couple hundred phones to a company is more important than consumer privacy.


Samsung Knox for Enterprise was just as unrespinsive and unhelpful as Apple.


I am obviously being targeted as six iphones and two droids over three carriers in the past tear and a half is no accident. All Apple needs to enroll you into ABM or ASM is your serial number.







Posted on Nov 8, 2026 2:48 AM

6 replies

HelpNeededPlease1 Author
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

Nov 9, 2026 1:29 PM in response to MrBill3

Someone is repeatedly enrolling my devices, if I knew who it was, I could stop it. They are enrolled before the devices are received by me. My carrier accounts have most likely been compromised, allowing them to see the serial numbers.


There is no help from Apple to release fraudulently enrolled personal devices.

Kurt Lang
User level: Level 9 (73,779 points)

Nov 9, 2026 1:39 PM in response to HelpNeededPlease1

If you purchased your phones through Verizon, and they were supposed to be new - they weren't. You were sold used phones that were not properly prepared for resale by removing the MDM profile and properly resetting the device to the default state.


Your beef is with Verizon, not Apple.

MrHoffman
User level: Level 10 (169,253 points)

Nov 9, 2026 2:23 PM in response to HelpNeededPlease1

Six iPhones, two Android phones, and three carriers, and presumably with multiple previous forum discussions and/or support escalations, can be inferred to mean your whole current response being somewhere between problematic, and failed.


It can also be inferred to indicate either your immense value as a target of very well-funded and well-connected adversaries, or that whatever you’re encountering and experiencing here is not exactly as you believe.


None of which can be addressed around here.


As for the reported hidden profiles, there can potentially be potentially-confusing data reported. Carrier offload Wi-Fi networks will show as managed devices for instance, but will not show profiles, and are not indicative of a managed or supervised device.


If you want to evaluate your particular situation further, you’ll be doing that offline and with formal help, as it involves direct access and sensitive and personal questions about your risks and your exposures and your data, and about who might be deeply interested in you, and other details of yourself and your exposures and risks.


And pending direct and formal assistance, with eight phones and three carriers, a feature phone or no phone currently seems the least-bad option. Or simply not having any sensitive information around on any potentially remotely-accessible device, and assuming pervasive and persistent compromise.

MrHoffman
User level: Level 10 (169,253 points)

Nov 9, 2026 2:35 PM in response to Lawrence Finch

Lawrence Finch wrote:
To enroll a device it must be physically in the hands of the person who enrolled it; it can’t be enrolled remotely.

When an organization purchases an iPhone, it can be enrolled as part of the purchase, and will arrive as managed.


Here is how that works: https://support.apple.com/guide/business/device-workflow-axm6a88f692e/web


An enrolled iPhones will show as managed or supervised, however.


It’s also possible that somebody grabs a pre-enrolled phone from the wrong stack in the back of a shop and erroneously provides it to a retail customer, but — again — it’ll show as managed or supervised. And it’s vanishingly unlikely across six iPhones.

Lawrence Finch
User level: Level 10 (244,490 points)

Nov 9, 2026 2:26 PM in response to HelpNeededPlease1

HelpNeededPlease1 wrote:
Someone is repeatedly enrolling my devices, if I knew who it was, I could stop it. They are enrolled before the devices are received by me. My carrier accounts have most likely been compromised, allowing them to see the serial numbers.
There is no help from Apple to release fraudulently enrolled personal devices.

To enroll a device it must be physically in the hands of the person who enrolled it; it can’t be enrolled remotely.

Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256390710