Lost Password to iPhone Backup

mvyiu88 wrote:

to anyone whos using windows, its actually asking for the password for your MS id/windows password

No it is not, unless that is the password that you entered when you created the first encrypted backup. Here is a list of the passwords that different users in this thread have reported to be the "correct" password:

• First iTunes account password (40 different users)
• Old iTunes account password, but not the oldest one
• Password used for almost all accounts (3 different users)
• All digit Password created a long time ago
• Computer/laptop login password (4 users)
• Laptop password (2 users)
• Computer password (4 users)
• Email password (3 users)
• iTunes with no capital letters
• Password not used anywhere else
• All numeric used in the past
• Password for old gaming site
• PC password (5 users)
• “iphonelogin”
• work computer password
• Current app store password (2 users)
• Paypal account password
• iPad unlock passcode
• Strongest variation of the base password I have ever used
• Old password
• Old work password
• Macbook password (2 users)
• Restriction passcode
• Gmail password (2 users)
• Current Apple ID password (2 users)
• Apple MobileMe password
• Apple ID password, but all lower case (8 users)
• Apple ID password, first one ever used, but all lower case (2 users)
• iPhone passcode when corporate profile was installed
• Passcode for a website
• iPhone screen unlock passcode (9 users)
• iPhone unlock passcode at the time the first backup was made (3 users)
• First password for work computer
• Old password used over 2 years ago (2 users)
• Previous owner’s iTunes password
• Current laptop password
• Wireless network password
• Electric bill and Skype password
• icloud password, all lower case
• Windows login for very old laptop
• iMac password (3 users)
• First iPhone 4 digit passcode
• iTunes password from last year
• 4 year old password
• iTunes password (current) (3 users)
• Old PC password
• Password for “Good” application
• Password used for everything+1234
• 1234 (4 users)
• 12345 (2 users)
• 0000
• Password I use for everything else (2 users)
• One of my husband’s passwords
• Some old non-Apple product password
• Screen passcode of the first iPhone that was backed up (2 users)
• Old password with different case on first letter
• “password”
• Windows Administrator password (2 users)
• Original Windows Administrator password
• Mackbook administrator password
• “iphone”+4 digit unlock code
• Voicemail password
• asd
• “herpderp”
• “darwin” (first name from credit card account)
• First name, all lower case
• Ms Exchange account password
• Facebook password
• Browser password
• Network admin password

Omom127 wrote:

How is it that this same issue has not been resolved by Apple?! it's 2017 and still happening. I use 3 PW and none work....I just want future backups to be unencrypted but I can't uncheck the box without the PW. Apple you guys have got to do something about this ridiculousness!

Because it isn't an Apple issue. If you don't remember or record your passwords that is not Apple's fault. And any way to bypass it would defeat the purpose of encrypting the backup in the first place. There were three solutions until recently.

1. Keep guessing until you get it; you get unlimited guesses.
2. Stop using iTunes to back up, and instead use iCloud backups, which are encrypted, but don't require you to remember the passcode.
3. Restore the phone as a New phone. You can then create an unencrypted backup, unless you have a company email account on the phone, and your IT department requires encrypted backups.

If you have iOS 11 on your phone there is now a way to create a new unencrypted backup, or a backup with a different passcode. See this Apple tip, and click the button "Get help with a forgotten password". It requires resetting all of your settings (including your screen layout), but doesn't result in any other lost data.

<Edited by Host>

1. Yes, the passcode can be saved in your keychain (it's even an option when you first enter the passcode). However, if it is, then iTunes will use it and fill it in automatically and you will not get the password prompt.

bjtitus wrote:

Looking through most of these comments it seems fairly likely that something like #3/#2 is or was happening with these backups. iTunes is probably using the logged in account password as a default for encrypted backups to save a step for users, assuming that they use one password across their Apple devices.

Absolutely not happening. If it was everyone's backup password would be the account password. But that is not the case. There are dozens of different backup passwords that users have discovered will unlock the backup. Are you suggesting that iTunes RANDOMLY chooses a password from all of the passwords in the user's keychain? That is a truly bizarre suggestion. The list of passwords reported in this thread is on the previous page, but I will repeat it here for your convenience. Note that some of these do not exist anywhere on any computer, such as the iPhone unlock passcode:

• First iTunes account password (40 different users)
• Old iTunes account password, but not the oldest one
• Password used for almost all accounts (3 different users)
• All digit Password created a long time ago
• Computer/laptop login password (4 users)
• Laptop password (2 users)
• Computer password (4 users)
• Email password (3 users)
• iTunes with no capital letters
• Password not used anywhere else
• All numeric used in the past
• Password for old gaming site
• PC password (5 users)
• “iphonelogin”
• work computer password
• Current app store password (2 users)
• Paypal account password
• iPad unlock passcode
• Strongest variation of the base password I have ever used
• Old password
• Old work password
• Macbook password (2 users)
• Restriction passcode
• Gmail password (2 users)
• Current Apple ID password (2 users)
• Apple MobileMe password
• Apple ID password, but all lower case (8 users)
• Apple ID password, first one ever used, but all lower case (2 users)
• iPhone passcode when corporate profile was installed
• Passcode for a website
• iPhone screen unlock passcode (9 users)
• iPhone unlock passcode at the time the first backup was made (3 users)
• First password for work computer
• Old password used over 2 years ago (2 users)
• Previous owner’s iTunes password
• Current laptop password
• Wireless network password
• Electric bill and Skype password
• icloud password, all lower case
• Windows login for very old laptop
• iMac password (3 users)
• First iPhone 4 digit passcode
• iTunes password from last year
• 4 year old password
• iTunes password (current) (3 users)
• Old PC password
• Password for “Good” application
• Password used for everything+1234
• 1234 (4 users)
• 12345 (2 users)
• 0000
• Password I use for everything else (2 users)
• One of my husband’s passwords
• Some old non-Apple product password
• Screen passcode of the first iPhone that was backed up (2 users)
• Old password with different case on first letter
• “password”
• Windows Administrator password (2 users)
• Original Windows Administrator password
• Mackbook administrator password
• “iphone”+4 digit unlock code
• Voicemail password
• asd
• “herpderp”
• “darwin” (first name from credit card account)
• First name, all lower case
• Ms Exchange account password
• Facebook password
• Browser password
• Network admin password

annikabj wrote:

password is the password it seems

It was for you, because that is what you entered when you were prompted for a backup password the first time you created an encrypted backup. I've compiled a list of passwords that users have reported turned out to be THEIR backup password. It is on the previous page of this thread, but I'll repeat it here for your edification (I note that "password" was only reported once before):

• First iTunes account password (40 different users)
• Old iTunes account password, but not the oldest one
• Password used for almost all accounts (3 different users)
• All digit Password created a long time ago
• Computer/laptop login password (4 users)
• Laptop password (2 users)
• Computer password (4 users)
• Email password (3 users)
• iTunes with no capital letters
• Password not used anywhere else
• All numeric used in the past
• Password for old gaming site
• PC password (5 users)
• “iphonelogin”
• work computer password
• Current app store password (2 users)
• Paypal account password
• iPad unlock passcode
• Strongest variation of the base password I have ever used
• Old password
• Old work password
• Macbook password (2 users)
• Restriction passcode
• Gmail password (2 users)
• Current Apple ID password (2 users)
• Apple MobileMe password
• Apple ID password, but all lower case (8 users)
• Apple ID password, first one ever used, but all lower case (2 users)
• iPhone passcode when corporate profile was installed
• Passcode for a website
• iPhone screen unlock passcode (9 users)
• iPhone unlock passcode at the time the first backup was made (3 users)
• First password for work computer
• Old password used over 2 years ago (2 users)
• Previous owner’s iTunes password
• Current laptop password
• Wireless network password
• Electric bill and Skype password
• icloud password, all lower case
• Windows login for very old laptop
• iMac password (3 users)
• First iPhone 4 digit passcode
• iTunes password from last year
• 4 year old password
• iTunes password (current) (3 users)
• Old PC password
• Password for “Good” application
• Password used for everything+1234
• 1234 (4 users)
• 12345 (2 users)
• 0000
• Password I use for everything else (2 users)
• One of my husband’s passwords
• Some old non-Apple product password
• Screen passcode of the first iPhone that was backed up (2 users)
• Old password with different case on first letter
• “password”
• Windows Administrator password (2 users)
• Original Windows Administrator password
• Mackbook administrator password
• “iphone”+4 digit unlock code
• Voicemail password
• asd
• “herpderp”
• “darwin” (first name from credit card account)
• First name, all lower case
• Ms Exchange account password
• Facebook password
• Browser password
• Network admin password

1. On your Mac, go to /Applications/Utilities/ and open Keychain Access app.
2. Under the Keychains section on the left-hand side of the app, select login. You should now see a list of websites and applications that use Keychain Access to store login information. Scroll down through this list until you get to the login item named “iPhone Backup“.
3. Double-click the “iPhone Backup” login item. This will open a new window with more details about your iTunes backup account. From this screen, check the “Show password” checkbox.
4. You will be prompted to enter your Mac OS X user password to authenticate. Once entered, click the Allowbutton to continue.
5. Once that’s done, you’ll return to the previous window showing all the details including the password in plain text. Make a note of it and ensure it’s kept somewhere secure so you can remember it the next time.

New iPhone 6s. Gonna back it up to my pc. It's never been backed up to this brand new HP pc. I tried changing password but it asks for old password. Since I have never backed it up to this new pc it should not have an old password. I do try to unclick the encrypt iPhone backup and it keeps prompting me to put in old password but it was never backed up to this brand new pc. I will back up and try to put in a New password. It does not prompt for a new password to be used to restore from a previous point. I have taken video but it shows my name phone number so I'm not posting it here. The pics will not upload.

If you restored the 6S from a backup of the previous phone it will retain the backup password of the previous phone. The backup password is not associated with a specific PC; it is associated with the data image of the phone being backed up. The only way to make an unencrypted backup of an iOS device is to set it up as new without restoring any previous backup.

New iPhone 6s. Gonna back it up to my pc. It's never been backed up to this brand new HP pc. I tried changing password but it asks for old password. Since I have never backed it up to this new pc it should not have an old password. I do try to unclick the encrypt iPhone backup and it keeps prompting me to put in old password but it was never backed up to this brand new pc. I will back up and try to put in a New password. It does not prompt for a new password to be used to restore from a previous point. I have taken video but it shows my name phone number so I'm not posting it here. The pics will not upload.

I clicked on Back up Now and I was NOT prompted to put in a password. I did it twice. On the 1st back up I stopped it and did it again. Still no prompt to put in a password twice as others have claimed it happens. Apple it's an easy test. New phone with 2 months of camera use and apps backing up to a brand new pc. See for yourself. It won't prompt you to put in a password in the beginning process of backing up locally. I have the latest iTunes software.

Even on a new PC if the image to be backed up had a password that password is still the correct one. It will not prompt for a password; it will use the password from the first time the device was backed up with encryption. The ONLY time it will prompt for a password is the very first time you make an encrypted backup. If you could make an unencrypted backup of a phone that previously had an encrypted backup that would be a way around the backup encryption, meaning that backup encryption would be worthless.

I'm backing up now to this new pc. New phone, new pc. I will try to restore in a few hours. I have it i7 core chip do it shouldn't be too long. I wonder if it will only ask for my phone unlock code. 6 digit code.

If it is a new phone that was set up as new and not restored from an iCloud backup of a predecessor phone, and you don't check Encrypt Backup it will not prompt for a passcode and the backup will be unencrypted - UNLESS you have a company MS Exchange email account on the phone. If you do, your IT department may have installed a security profile on your phone that requires encryption. Unencrypted backups do not include all information on your phone; passwords and health data are not included in unencrypted backups.

It was the password from the old pc iTunes backup restore session. That's interesting because it was prompting me to put in backup restore on this brand new pic that had NO restore on it. If it would have said "backup password from your last restore session that was used for previous restore data on the brand new iPhone 6s." On this new pic I tried to backup phone and do it without encryption and it wouldn't let me unclick the the encryption box. One of my problems is that I use the app LastPass to save my passwords. Once I restore or wipe phone it does not allow me access to the passwords. Living and learning for sure. But when I did go to backup to this new pc it did not prompt me to create a password for this backup on the brand new pc. I was relying on what you said about using the password for the restore to this phone from my old pc.

Thanks, Jessi! I tried to restored from a previous backup and it kept telling me that my password was incorrect yet I know that it was correct because I used the same as my apple id. When I saw your post, it gave me the idea to use my Windows 10 password, and guess what? It worked! Thanks a million!

So here's a stupid question... If you have the device and you have access to it, and it's iCloud is set up, what is the harm in allowing one to delete any current backups and starting fresh with a new encryption PW? They could even add a verification step like when you add a device to your iCloud account and it puts a verification window with the 6 digit code on your other devices. If it's not the same iCloud account that the backup is associated with and you're unable to verify with another device or email account associated with the iCloud account, then say you're SOL.