How to Completely Erase Personal Data Off Your iPhone
So you want to sell your iPhone. But what if you are selling it to someone you dont know - for example, on Ebay? Do you really want them to be able to recover your personal data that was stored on your iPhone? Things like phone numbers, saved passwords, and favorite websites? No, I didn't think so. Simply use this guide to make sure that even the best hacker wont be able to touch your private files!
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Instructions
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First, make sure that you really want to erase everything on your iPhone. If you are purchasing a new iPhone (the 3G model, for example), it is extremely valuable to perform a backup of your phone in iTunes before you continue with this process. This will allow you to transfer all your current files and settings to your new phone.
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To begin, click on the Settings icon on your iPhone.
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Click on the General tab.
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Click on the Reset tab.
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You will then be presented with a few options. Click on the one that says "Erase All Content & Settings". Warning: this will erase everything on your iPhone (music, phone numbers, web sites, text messages - everything!) so make sure you really want to do it.
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Click the red button that reads "Erase iPhone".
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Confirm your decision once more. If you are asked for a security PIN, the default code is 0000.
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Wait for the erase to complete. This could take a while, so be patient. The iPhone will reboot after the process is complete. Your iPhone has now been securely restored to factory defaults and no traces of your personal data has been left behind!
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Tips & Warnings
Before erasing all data, make sure you have a backup of your iPhone in iTunes.
If you are asked to imput a security PIN, the default is 0000. If not, try the PIN associated with your visual voicemail.
Resources
- Photo Credit askdavetaylor.com
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Comments
View all 10 Comments-
Thanks, it was so easy.
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This does not erase all information on your phone. There are still traces of information on the phone, especially if you have updated to iOS 5. Your apple id, phone number and access to your provider still remain on your phone.
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Easy-Peasy when you know how! Thank you for the info.
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I followed all of these instructions before selling my phone, but just realized I failed to take out my old SIM card when I sold it. Does that matter? Is all of my info still on there?
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PrincessAlissa
Feb 24, 2009
You should always remove your SIM card! Even if you do an erase of your phone, it isnt going to erase your SIM card - just the info that was stored directly on your phone (like pictures, text messages
