How do I remove activation lock from an iPad 12.9 4th gen?

albes wrote:

Apple can unlock an iPad if I prove it's legally mine and, according to the local regulations of Italy (and according to the paper I have from the lost&found office) the device belongs to be, so why not unlocking it?

The only way Apple will unlock it is if you have the original purchase receipt from Apple or Authorized Apple seller. The device still belongs to the person it is locked to, whether they have claimed it from your local government or not. You can provide the documentation you have to see for yourself.

How to remove Activation Lock - Apple Support

Moreover, I am also here to give it back: why can't apple inform the previous owner that I am here to give the device back? It's a pity it can't be used.

The previous owner already knows where the device is as they can track it using Find My. They are also capable of providing contact information if they wish. The choice to do this rests solely on the owner and Apple will not get involved.

I don't feel like recycling it. I will probably wait for a working tool to unlock it: with other devices it is already possible, maybe in the future I'll be able to unlock it and -eventually- find the original owner.

Not likely you will be able to find a tool to unlock it as the Activation Lock is designed to prevent thieves from stealing devices and being able to sell them to others to be used. There may be companies that claim they can do that, but the users who have tried were only left with a device that is still unusable and also the money they paid.

I understand your goodwill effort to get the device to the owner, but it is just not possible. Only the owner has control over the device and the information they want to provide if it is found.

iSorry, but you will never be able to use the device. It will always be locked to the original owner and they are still able to track the device if they want to. The fact that they did not pick it up at the police station, does not mean you can remove the lock that they have put on the device and make it yours. The original owner will remain in control of the device and for privacy reasons, you will not know who they are. When they marked it as lost, they had the option to provide information if it was found, but if they choose not to do that, there is nothing you can do about it. As IdrisSeabright suggested, recycling is the best way to avoid it going into a landfill.

1) As is, you are the proud "owner" of an Activation Locked iPad. Apple has no obligation to you, as a subsequent keeper of a device to which you cannot prove original ownership, to release the Activation Lock.

2) Under GDPR legislation operative throughout the EU, Apple cannot legally disclose any personally identifiable information that it may hold to third parties (such as yourself). Neither are Apple permitted to use any data that it may hold for any purpose other than that declared when the information was given by its owner. Apple does not collect personal information with the intent of using this data to reunite a lost device with its legal owner - in addition to which the AppleID associated with the Activation Lock does not, of itself, confirm any legal right to ownership of the device.

3) Unless the original owner of the lost device has visibly placed contact information on the device, or remotely set the device to its "lost mode" and displayed an appropriate message on the screen of the iPad, the owner of the AppleID that currently inhibits further use of the device is (and will remain) untraceable.

4) The Activation Lock is a very effective anti-theft mechanism that cannot be defeated by manipulating the device itself. Apple devices must contact Apple's server infrastructure during initial setup - during which the individual activation status is checked. If the activation status is locked (as is currently the case), the last AppleID credentials that last successfully activated the device must be successfully entered. If incorrect, the device activation process will fail - and the device will remain locked and unusable.

In conclusion:

• The Activation Lock cannot be bypassed - by you or anyone else.
• Unless the prior owner chooses to come forward, or you are able to independently make contact, you will not be able to trace the owner.
• The iPad is and will forever remain unusable by you.

Unfortunately, unless you know who the previous owner is, the Activation Lock cannot be removed. Please recycle it responsibly.

You may think that way, but it is not the case. Apple will not unlock it. You are in possession of a device that is tracking your location that the original owner is able to see and you will never be able to use.

How to remove Activation Lock - Apple Support

everything is here good luck

It’s not yours though. You have been allowed to retain possession but you have absolutely no proof of purchase and it’s locked because the true owner has it attached to their Apple ID and it currently holds their sensitive data. Of course you can choose to hold on to it with the hopes of being able to gain access but the likelihood of that happening are slim to none.

albes wrote:

In fact, about possession and property you are wrong: according to the Italian law, after one year, if nobody claims the lost object, the founder is the legal owner, if he wants. If not, the object will be put on official auction and the best offer can claim it.

So, right now I not only have "possession", but I am the legal owner of the device, having a legal title of property, given by the law. So I think apple should unlock it, as it operates in Italy thus having to comply to its laws.

That law most likely just applies to the physical device. It probably doesn't apply to the operating system on the device, which always belongs to Apple and the account which belongs to the account holder.

Mac Jim ID wrote:

iSorry....

Is that a trademarked term? ;-)

I may have to submit it to the public domain. Free use for all!

Mac Jim ID wrote:

I may have to submit it to the public domain. Free use for all!

I thought it was quite clever!