Why need phone number to register Apple ID

Question

Why need phone number to register Apple ID

I don't want to use my primary Apple ID in the forums, so why I can't create a 2nd Apple ID without providing a phone number during account setup.

On top of that the sign up form is broken.

Enter a new phone number.

Be sure to enter a phone number you can always access. It will be used to verify your identity any time you sign in on a new device or web browser. Messaging or data rates may apply.

Then I fill in the number and I get an error message right number the phone saying " Your first name cannot include special characters."

Then it says...

Verify with:

Text message

Phone call

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The form is definitively broken because my name doesn't have special characters and the phone number I enter is a normal number.

It's impossible to sign up without a phone number.

Posted on Sep 8, 2020 8:23 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

havenoname9999 Author

Level 1

10 points

Sep 8, 2020 1:24 PM in response to Michael Black

@Michael Black

I am looking for solution not showing me the Terms and Conditions. If you don't have anything to contribute to, please refrain from doing so.

One of the solutions I found is to use an older iPad (maybe older iPhone will work too) with older iOS. That allows creating new Apple ID without phone number.

Although signing up with that newly created login information will give me a nag after login inviting me to setup 2FA, it allows to skip that and continue without 2FA.

Thank you all.

PS: By the way - I was fooling around with email addresses and now the email address I added to my account and removed can't be reused to create new Apple ID account for another 30 days. Just in case somebody has the same issue.

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Answer 2

Sep 8, 2020 8:57 AM in response to havenoname9999

Anyhow, I found an old Apple account I created 10 years ago so I no longer need to create new account. But the question still stands. Why does Apple force people to provide phone number, if the user *chooses* to not provide one. If I lose access to my account, it's my conscious choice and decision.

Apple privacy page says... privacy is fundamental right. So where is that right gone suddenly?????

Privacy

Privacy is a fundamental human right. At Apple, it’s also one of our core values. Your devices are important to so many parts of your life. What you share from those experiences, and who you share it with, should be up to you. We design Apple products to protect your privacy and give you control over your information. It’s not always easy. But that’s the kind of innovation we believe in.

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Answer 3

Sep 8, 2020 10:48 AM in response to havenoname9999

The primary reason as to “why” is simply because it is one of the required inputs for an AppleID as set by Apple. Apple requires a telephone number to set up an AppleID. Just as your AppleID requires a verifiable email address as the login ID. It’s Apple’s login system for their services, so they set the policy of what they require to create an Apple login ID.

That’s about the extant that any user here can respond to any question about “why” Apple does anything - because that’s how they chose to do it.

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Answer 4

Sep 8, 2020 8:43 AM in response to havenoname9999

Anyways, the form isn't broken, it's just my Lastpass was filling in the name field with my email address and I didn't notice.

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The first part of the question stands - why do I need a phone number to register Apple ID. And How about if I don't have a phone number or if I don't have access to a phone number I can use in case I need to recover the account.

If all I own is an iPod or an Apple keyboard I should still be allowed to create an account without phone number. It's my choice.

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Answer 5

Eric Root

Level 10

684,525 points

Sep 8, 2020 10:22 AM in response to havenoname9999

Did you get an email when you set up the ID?

If you recently updated your account, however, you can unenroll for a period of two weeks. Just open your enrollment confirmation email and click the link to return to your previous security settings.

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Answer 6

Sep 8, 2020 4:20 PM in response to havenoname9999

Terms and conditions? I never mentioned them. The fact is we don’t work for Apple, so we have no knowledge of Apple’s decisions and choices. So when someone asks “why” Apple does something, nobody here can speak to such a question. We don’t know.

Apple requires a telephone number to make an AppleID. They have for years, long before 2FA. It is what it is. You’re not going to get an actual answer from Apple why you cannot select NOT to include a telephone number.

So if you’re looking for a solution to make an AppleID without providing a telephone number, you’re not going to ever be satisfied with anything anyone here posts, because you cannot create an AppleID without providing a telephone number. That is information Apple requires to make an AppleID, for whatever reasons they have.

And if you wish to use messages in iCloud, iCloud Keychain, home kit, Apple Pay or any of the increasing Apple services that require it, you will have to then enable 2FA. And 2FA requires registration of an SMS telephone number as a backup to default codes.

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Answer 7

Sep 8, 2020 4:37 PM in response to Michael Black

I just created an Apple ID with the steps described no problem and neither 2FA or phone number was required. As a proof, I will post with the user ID kapoxip473 etc.. If they delete the post it's because the screenshot contains the email address to give you a proof it is working.

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Answer 8

Eric Root

Level 10

684,525 points

Sep 8, 2020 9:21 AM in response to havenoname9999

If you are setting up a new Apple ID, it will probably have 2 Factor Authentication enabled, which requires a phone number to receive verification codes.

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Answer 9

Sep 8, 2020 9:24 AM in response to Eric Root

Yes. And no way to skip that. 2FA is now mandatory.

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Answer 10

Sep 8, 2020 4:40 PM in response to havenoname9999

Don’t post the email unless you wish to hand it over the worlds scam/spam bots (seriously, spammers web scrape sites Ike this all the time, constantly).

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Answer 11

Sep 8, 2020 4:42 PM in response to Michael Black

temp-mail.org

No problem ;)

Thanks.

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Why need phone number to register Apple ID

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