Good Grief but I hate changing passwords - Trusted Device issues.

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Level 1

20 points

Good Grief but I hate changing passwords - Trusted Device issues.

I changed my email password. I try to do that at least once a year, as it screws my whole system each time.

When I went to put the new password into Mail, nothing happened. I had to get my server to send me a profile configuration file, but I had to delete all my accounts and settings to get that to work, which screwed up everything.

I added that and it asked for the code on my trusted device, but I sold my trusted device and upgraded to an iPhone 17 Pro. So I removed all the old trusted devices and added the Pro, but no, even two days after, it is still asking for the old trusted device. So I tried deleting "delete your end-to-end encrypted data stored in iCloud," as suggested, but it just jams and spins.

[Edited by Moderator]

Mac Studio, macOS 15.7

Posted on Oct 3, 2025 4:17 AM

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Answer 1

MrHoffman

Level 10

146,221 points

Oct 3, 2025 9:41 AM in response to austenlennon

That passcode prompt is for iCloud Keychain or Advanced Data Protection. If you can’t yet access that, then other passwords will be unavailable. Given the removal of all trusted devices apparently without migrating and apparently also without enabling iCloud Keychain on the new iPhone, regaining password access might be a problem. The removal of the trusted devices is at the core of what is (not) happening here.

And yes, unique robust passwords are far more important than frequent changes. This password change only when needed and not on any schedule policy also per US NIST security guidelines for the last ten years or so, so it’s a well-established thing.

I suspect you’ll have to contact Apple Support, and ask them to look into how to recover.

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Answer 2

Oct 3, 2025 8:04 AM in response to austenlennon

If you have a strong password such as generated by Apple Passwords or 1Password there is no point in changing it ever. Security experts have been trying to tell businesses to stop forcing password changes, because it actually reduces security, as you have to write down the new password because you can’t remember it.

But you should really be using the highest security: passkeys rather than passwords, for all sites that support passkeys, such as Apple, Google, Microsoft and many other online providers.

When you say “it” what is the “it" that asked for the code? Apple? Google?

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