How to unlock a deceased person's iPhone: what Apple can do

25 October 2026 · 7 min read

When someone dies, their iPhone often holds what the family needs most: photos, messages, contacts and the codes that unlock other accounts. If nobody knows the passcode, it can feel as if everything is locked away. Here's what's actually possible when you need to unlock a deceased person's iPhone, what Apple will and won't do, and how to make sure your own family isn't stuck.

The hard truth: Apple can't unlock the passcode

An iPhone's data is encrypted and protected by its passcode, and Apple doesn't know anyone's passcode. Apple's support page is clear: it can't help remove the passcode lock without erasing the device. Erasing the phone makes it usable again, but deletes everything on it that isn't stored somewhere else.

Don't keep guessing. After repeated wrong attempts, the iPhone locks for longer and longer, and if its Erase Data setting is on, it erases itself after 10 failed attempts.

The good news: much of the data may be in iCloud

If your loved one used iCloud, many of their photos, messages, notes and backups may be stored there. Apple has two ways to give families access to that data.

1. If they set up a Legacy Contact

Apple's Legacy Contact feature lets people choose who can access their account data after they die. A Legacy Contact requests access with the access key they were given and a death certificate. Once Apple approves the request, they can access data such as photos, messages, notes, files, downloaded apps and device backups.

• What's not included: purchased films, music, books and subscriptions, and anything in iCloud Keychain, such as passwords, passkeys and payment information.
• Time-limited: access lasts three years from when the first request is approved. After that, the account is deleted.
• Activation Lock: once a Legacy Contact request is completed, Activation Lock is removed from the person's devices, so they can be erased and used again.

2. Without a Legacy Contact: a court order

In the US and many other places, Apple can give access to a deceased person's account with a court order naming you as the rightful inheritor of their personal information. Some countries, including France, Germany, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, accept other documents instead. Apple generally also asks for a death certificate, and only one person can request access to a deceased person's account. Families can also ask Apple to delete the account permanently.

What about the phone itself?

• To reuse or sell it: Apple may be able to help remove Activation Lock from devices signed in to the person's account. The device then has to be erased and restored.
• To get data off it: without the passcode, there's no official way in. Check iCloud first, and look for backups on the person's computer.
• Two-factor codes: if codes for other accounts went to this phone, contact each company's bereavement team. Banks, email providers and social networks have their own processes.

How to spare your own family this

1. Add a Legacy Contact. On iPhone, go to Settings, tap your name, then Sign-In & Security, then Legacy Contact. Make sure each contact keeps their access key. Our guide to Apple Legacy Contact walks through it.
2. Make sure someone can find your passcode if something happens, stored somewhere secure rather than on a sticky note.
3. Plan for passwords too. Legacy Contact doesn't pass on passwords. A password manager with emergency access, or an encrypted vault your family can open only when it's needed, fills that gap.
4. Write down what exists: your important accounts, and who your family should contact. Our digital estate planning checklist helps.