Apple Intelligence is now available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac!

📢 Newsroom Update

Apple introduces M4 Pro and M4 Max. Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Why can't I log into my Apple ID with MacBook Air?

Why can't I log into my Apple ID even thought im running iOS 16.2 on it. it states "Can’t Use Your Apple ID on This Device"

Your Apple ID can only be used on devices running iOS 16.2 or later, or macOS 13.1 or later. This MacBook Air can't be updated to the latest software.


[Re-Titled by Moderator]


Posted on Dec 19, 2022 4:41 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 29, 2023 3:40 AM

Let me summarize all of this in to one simple reason why all this is going on. Greedy companies like Apple is not satisfied with you buying their products, they want to use that very same device you paid for to benefit from you as long as you own it weter forsing you to keep on upgrading your iCloud account (they say its your data you can have it when ever you want! its a lie almost every time something magical ill happened your attempt to getting your data will fail but it will be available at iCloud

, cuntennue paying for your iCloud. When you turn advanced scutity option on your data gets encrypted only you can access to it they cannot, although your secret key is stored in that same place, but accordingp to App, they can’t access OK, so in that case they cannot make money off of your computer use because excess money s not allowed to them ( i believe they still do n a deferent way so there is no trace back to them. and this makes their making money with your information get harder for them, their idea of fighting back with this esue is giving hard time much as possible with advanced security so user turns that of and hands over the key to apple one of the most greedy and always hungry wolf. only solution to this is move away from this monopoly they sucked you in to. They have way to much control over an item you paid for and we all know they are not cheap either.


25 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Mar 29, 2023 3:40 AM in response to macmender

Let me summarize all of this in to one simple reason why all this is going on. Greedy companies like Apple is not satisfied with you buying their products, they want to use that very same device you paid for to benefit from you as long as you own it weter forsing you to keep on upgrading your iCloud account (they say its your data you can have it when ever you want! its a lie almost every time something magical ill happened your attempt to getting your data will fail but it will be available at iCloud

, cuntennue paying for your iCloud. When you turn advanced scutity option on your data gets encrypted only you can access to it they cannot, although your secret key is stored in that same place, but accordingp to App, they can’t access OK, so in that case they cannot make money off of your computer use because excess money s not allowed to them ( i believe they still do n a deferent way so there is no trace back to them. and this makes their making money with your information get harder for them, their idea of fighting back with this esue is giving hard time much as possible with advanced security so user turns that of and hands over the key to apple one of the most greedy and always hungry wolf. only solution to this is move away from this monopoly they sucked you in to. They have way to much control over an item you paid for and we all know they are not cheap either.


Dec 12, 2023 12:04 PM in response to Jake Monty

I recently encountered a similar issue with my MacBook Pro 2015 after restoring it using Time Machine. I spent hours on the phone with Apple Support, following their suggestions to format the hard drive twice, once with a Time Machine restore and once with a clean install, and then logging in with my Apple ID. They also instructed me to enable Advanced Data Protection on my Mac mini with Apple silicon and then disable it. All of these steps proved to be futile.

After exhausting all options, I decided to delete my Yubikeys from my Apple ID in iCloud. To my surprise, this simple solution resolved the issue, and I was finally able to log in to my MacBook Pro using my Apple ID.

I hope this experience proves helpful to others who may encounter a similar problem


Jan 18, 2023 4:44 PM in response to Jake Monty

I think this is all tied to Advanced Data Protection, which has a minimum operating system requirement for all devices accessing your Apple ID. During the process, you may have removed a device that didn't meet the requirements from your account to force the enrollment to go through and now you're trying to sign in on the ineligible (or formerly ineligible) device.


What is confusing is when you do meet the requirement after enabling Advanced Data Protection, you can encounter this error which is telling you to upgrade to a version you are actively running.


Once you meet the requirements in the error message, you need to sign out of your Apple ID on the device giving you the error reboot and then sign back in.


In the case where you're doing a forced re-install (DFU, destroy APFS volume group, etc.), after signing out, be sure to also remove the device from your Apple ID before signing in. Once signed in you're device should show up in your account again.


And for the people that are not able to update to the required version in the error message, you'll need to disable Advanced Data Protection before your device can sign back in again, but ideally you need a newer device because the device is no longer supported in this security context.


I worded this solution to apply to both macOS and iOS/iPadOS because the security requirements are placed on your Apple ID by Advanced Data Protection.


To learn more about Advanced Data Protection visit Apple's support page on this topic.

Jan 29, 2023 8:56 PM in response to Jake Monty

Hi all,


If you're using Advanced Data Protection on your Apple ID, you can only sign in to your Apple ID on devices running recent OS versions. For iPhone, that's iOS 16.2, and for Mac, that's macOS Ventura 13.1. If you live outside of the US, you might need to update to iOS 16.3 and macOS Ventura 13.2 (that's when Advanced Data Protection got released globally).


For Apple's list of minimum OS versions, please see here: How to turn on Advanced Data Protection for iCloud - Apple Support


If Apple claims that your Mac isn't compatible with macOS Ventura, you have three options available:


  • Buy or use a newer Mac (very expensive),
  • Disable Advanced Data Protection, or
  • If you're technically savvy and are comfortable with this, use third-party workarounds to install macOS Ventura 13.1 or later (or 13.2 or later) onto your Mac. A popular tool in this category is OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Please note that Apple doesn't provide any kind of support for these workarounds, and they could break easily.

Jun 23, 2023 12:13 AM in response to LeRoiLeon

You should stop responding to people who are in need of help not some run around, let someone who knows what they are talking about do it, your unhelpfully minded pre-generated responses delaying people getting help from an knowledgeable person, although most knowledgeable person here refers you to a another article that will recommend you to another article sand on and on till apple product user gets frustrated and slams down there expensive apple device on the desk and leaves, You have being just helped apple sport or some 10 year old kid wants to play tech. I have so much money invested in apple products and they started to be come all with software issues its getting annoying on top not being able to get help unless you are willing to pay more then what you payed for the product to begin with. And let me start with iCloud it is like blackhole one have it it docent want you to have it, you can look at them with your apple devices but if you want to take them back/download in a universal format GOOOOODDD LUUUUCCKK . Getting very close to drop all this money trap craps at a local donation place (not Good will)

Feb 4, 2023 12:14 PM in response to rigosj

If you haven't missed something, then my next recommendation would be to backup your device and restore the operating system, especially if the problem is only affecting one device.


If you experience the problem on multiple devices, you may need to contact Apple Support on the phone to have them look at your account. Advanced Data Protection requirements shouldn't be applied to unenrolled Apple IDs at this time.

Mar 28, 2023 8:10 PM in response to Jake Monty

This happened to me too when I decided to use Yubico hardware security keys to secure my Apple ID. I have an iPhone running iOS 16.3.1, an iPad Pro on iPadOS 16.3.1 and an iMac running macOS Monterey 12.6.4. After installing the 2 security keys on the iPhone and the iPad, I found that I couldn't log into my Apple ID on the iMac. Only when I removed the security keys on the iPad (which also automatically removed them from the iPhone) did I get to log on to my Apple ID on the iMac. So I'm back to 6-digit 2FA codes. So much for trying to increase the security of my Apple ID. I'd have to buy a new Mac running Ventura (which my 2015 iMac isn't compatible with) to be able to use security keys on all my Apple devices.


I hope this helps someone who's run into the same problem.



Why can't I log into my Apple ID with MacBook Air?

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.