Can partner access my phone?

First, you will want to make sure that it is your Apple ID that is signed into the device. If your former partner has his own domain and you have an email with that domain, I would recommend switching it to a personal address.

You can check what your Apple ID is by navigating to Settings > [your name]

Next, to check for Device Management software, navigate to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management

If you go there and it says "Sign in to Work or School Account...", there is not any Device Management software installed.

You will however want to review what apps you have installed on your phone that may perform any monitoring functions. For example, any app that provides GPS locations like Life360.

Another thing to check would be the devices you are signed into with your Apple ID. To do this, navigate to Settings > [your name] - scroll down and you'll see what devices you're signed into.

There is a lot of Spyware that will run on all devices. If anyone has access to your phone, and has seen you PIN, it can be installed, and it’s nearly impossible to find. If it’s not persistent (meaning it reinstalls after a restore, or if it’s cloud based (not Apple ICloud), it can also access.

one thing you can try, reset your phone to factory settings. Prior to this, save photos and documents to a USB device. You should also change your Apple ID, check periodically that it’s not been re-enabled (try to sign into the iCloud on a device that does not belong to you. Since you can sign in with a phone number, you would also need a new phone number for your new ID. You can keep your old phone number, but remove it from trusted devices under Apple.

Don’t restore apps (if you change ID, you can’t keep them anyway. Make sure you have deleted any paid apps to prevent payment. Before all of this, are you certain someone is monitoring?

Or, just get used to the idea that someone is watching. Never leave your phone lying around, think of it as $50k in cash! You can also add a more complex PIN on your device so that someone can’t shoulder surf as easy to get access with known PIN.

And make sure your router is encrypted, search on War Driving to learn how ppl can view unencrypted data by scanning your network. Use different passwords for different accounts. I would suggest you use a different email account instead of your Apple ID for email. I’ve encountered many issues related to this type of activity. I wish it was just someone reading my messages and email! Apple also provides several added security features, read about them. They are preventative however.

Duzza93 wrote:

What I'm also curious is whether my ex can request somewhere, for example where he bought the phone from, to get remote access to the device and check up on my activity either in browser or in my applications such as WhatsApp and Messenger. Would they be allowed to disclose to him any information, given that he bought it on his company name and account with subscription payment on his phone number? He basically prolonged his SIM package subscription for another year by taking the phone included in the package and then gave me the phone instead since he doesn't need another one. The SIM card in my phone is my own, none of his.

No. Wherever he bought the phone, they would have no ability to monitor or track your iPhone or your usage nor can they give him any information that would allow him to do so, unless it was purchased used and jailbroken in which case the situation can be different. Getting remote access to your phone is even less likely; the phone company cannot do that, and for anyone else to try requires very sophisticated tools, all of which Apple has worked very hard to block.

Given all the things you've checked and done, I think you have very little to worry about.

Regards.