Have an iPhone 12 Pro I recently updated to iOS 26.1. Afterwards I discovered that the list of passwords used on networks prior to the update have disappeared from the Passwords app. Only passwords for networks to which I have connected after the update are in the WiFi list in Passwords. What happened to the earlier WiFi passwords and can they be recovered?
iPhone 12 Pro
spdsail wrote:
In response to MrHoffman: iCloud Keychain is enabled.
That means it’s usually synced everywhere, then.
If the "password sync might not be working correctly", is there a means to confirm and correct?
No means to confirm it, in my experience.
I’ve had it happen a couple of times with password corruptions (and not Wi-Fi passwords), and recovery involved shutting off the iCloud Keychain feature everywhere and powering down everywhere, then powering up in one place and confirming the passwords, enabling iCloud Keychain, allowing a re-sync, then incrementally powering up and re-enabling each of the other devices.
In the local case, the corruptions were likely due to an unstable network link.
spdsail wrote:
In response to MrHoffman: iCloud Keychain is enabled.
That means it’s usually synced everywhere, then.
If the "password sync might not be working correctly", is there a means to confirm and correct?
No means to confirm it, in my experience.
I’ve had it happen a couple of times with password corruptions (and not Wi-Fi passwords), and recovery involved shutting off the iCloud Keychain feature everywhere and powering down everywhere, then powering up in one place and confirming the passwords, enabling iCloud Keychain, allowing a re-sync, then incrementally powering up and re-enabling each of the other devices.
In the local case, the corruptions were likely due to an unstable network link.
The update may have reset the network settings as a requirement to install. The update was updating network settings.
It’s noted in the corresponding support article that resetting network settings will result in loss of passwords.
“This resets Wi-Fi networks and passwords, cellular settings, and VPN and APN settings.”
If you can't connect to Wi-Fi on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support
spdsail wrote:
Jeff Donald's reply states the update "may have reset the network settings". That sounds like speculation the reset occurred. If a reset did occur as part of the update, suspect that would have affected a lot of people. I have not seen others report an experience similar to mine.
You’re correct; I’ve also not seen widespread reports, and a settings reset shouldn’t clobber saved passwords
I’ll assume you’re looking for the previous Wi-Fi passwords in Passwords app?
Is iCloud Keychain enabled? If so, the password sync might not be working correctly.
Jeff Donald's reply states the update "may have reset the network settings". That sounds like speculation the reset occurred. If a reset did occur as part of the update, suspect that would have affected a lot of people. I have not seen others report an experience similar to mine.
spdsail wrote:
Jeff Donald's reply states the update "may have reset the network settings". That sounds like speculation the reset occurred. If a reset did occur as part of the update, suspect that would have affected a lot of people. I have not seen others report an experience similar to mine.
No one here can know, definitively, what happened to your phone and why. We can make educated guesses based on years/decades of experience.
During an update, things can happen to a very small number of people who share some particular constellation of settings, apps, and good luck charms. Also, I suspect that a very significant number of people wouldn't ever notice if passwords to networks they rarely or even use were missing. So it's possible that more people are experiencing this than are aware of. And, even among those who notice, they might do what I'd do which is shrug, assume I didn't actually save it.
spdsail wrote:
Only passwords for networks to which I have connected after the update are in the WiFi list in Passwords.
Bearing in mind the article MrHoffman linked, there are two very different methods of accessing previously used Wi-Fi passwords. At least in my case, they yield different results.
Method 1:
Method 2:
In my case, method 1 only retains recently accessed networks while method 2 goes back many years.
You mentioned using the Passwords app so I assume you used method 2. If so, as MrHoffman suggested, perhaps you have an iCloud issue.
In response to sberman: I have checked for the missing wifi passwords via both methods and achieved the same results ...only wifi passwords used in the past several days.
In fairness, most of the missing wifi passwords are of no importance and can be easily recovered/restored when I revisit wifi networks of the past. It is the wifi networks of relatives and friends I visit that have struggled to locate or remember their passwords. It was convenient to have the iPhone automatically connect using a saved password. I posted my question hoping there was an obvious solution for restoring the missing passwords. My thanks to those who have replied and offered suggestions.
spdsail wrote:
Have an iPhone 12 Pro I recently updated to iOS 26.1.
Correction: My iPhone is current with iOS 26.2.1. I made a typo when writing my initial question to the community.
In response to MrHoffman: iCloud Keychain is enabled.
If the "password sync might not be working correctly", is there a means to confirm and correct? Thank you.
Previously used WiFi passwords disappeared after updating to iOS26.1.
