I keep getting reset password emails i havent tried to reset and my email is not something that someone would accidently mistype

not to hijack the thread, but I've had ongoing issues w being locked out of my account since early July, every few days or sometimes as long as a week between lock outs, supposedly because my password is incorrect. After the usual failed log in attempts, I have to go and change my password.

So how does this happen? If I change the password myself legitimately, I always get an auto email from Apple confirming that my password has changed. But whenever I'm locked out by whatever mysterious force is changing my password, I never get an email informing me that "someone" has changed "my" password. Apple just tells me the password is incorrect and eventually forces me to reset it.

Plus if someone or some bot is somehow accessing my account to change my password, they are not using that access to purchase anything or download anything (so does it seem reasonable that this really IS a malicious hacker - why would a hacker hack an account just to change a password every couple days and leave without using the access to DO anything malicious?) ; and (b) when that person or bot changes my password, I SHOULD regardless be getting an auto email from Apple at my registered email address to inform me but I am not. So how is my password being changed without any notification of the fact? Even if I change it myself, I still get that email.

The only weird download during these past 6 weeks from the App store that I did not recognize as my own was a download of a free massive multiplayer game (Rome 2) and even at that I can't be 100% sure that I didn't mistakenly hit the install button when i was checking out the game description - but even so, would a hacker breaks into my account so he can use my ID to download a free game? Plus my account shows this game as installed, but I've never installed it on any devices. Even checked the Game Center on my iPad in case it was some weird deal where a free game was installed as a demo without my knowledge, but it's not there.

It has to be a glitch on the Apple side, something I suspect to do with multiple devices on an account judging by the way Support reacted when I told them I do have multiple devices - see below (i have a MacBook, iPod and iPad, and was thinking of buying an iPad mini until all this started happening).

I did take the time to contact Support about this, and after some dicking around they transferred me to a number that just rang and rang and no one ever picked up. I was told I was being transfered to Account Security or something like that - pretty hilarious. They asked me whether I had multiple Apple devices, and then transferred me to nowhere.

I live on my own, and have never shared my challenge questions w anyone, and have changed my questions a few times since this started happening anyway. So the only way (at least from my non-techie POV) for an infiltrator to be able to change my password would be to use my email and original password, but as mentioned that SHOULD in theory mean that I would at least get a confirmation email that it's been changed, even if not actually changed by me. But I only discover the issue when App Store or the Apple server prompts me to re-log in and then refuses my password.

As mentioned, it's not like anyone is changing my password and then attempting to buy a ton of stuff from the App store or iTunes on my credit card - the password just gets changed randomly.

I find it very hard to believe that this is a hacker, unless it's a bot just testing the Apple security in preparation for a more lucrative hack attack - if it's just someone trying to hijack my account, he or she has had plenty of chances in the last 6 weeks to take advantage of locking me out of my account (if there is any advantage). I didn;t even keep ALL the Apple emails I received, but I just counted the ones I did save and since July 3 I've had to change my password over 12 times!

The prompt from Apple when I try to log in with my supposedly "wrong" password and they force me to reset is just that it's the wrong password - it doesn't say that the account has been locked due to suspected malicious behaviour or locked because of consecutive prior unsuccessful log-ins with an incorrect password. Basically just tells me that I'm so stupid I can't remember my password longer than a week, lol.

I have to suspect Apple has a problem that they are not telling us about.

Martin

I've been getting these same emails three and four times a day, even on days when neither my computer nor my Iphone have been turned on. I only have two registered devices, and have never accessed any apple product or service on any other device,.

Not on does apple refuse to acknowledge this is even an issue, they also have no way, exceot telephone, to contact customer support. Fat lot of good that does me - I cannot use a regular voice telephone.

They keep recommending turning on the two-setp log in process. I would but I can't access my account. You have to wait something like two weeks between account changes or some such nonsense.

For now, I am going to try ignoring the reset password emails and see waht happens. Any ideas on what i can try after that?

This is the formal Apple advice. I send it as I have seen some threads suggesting the address you used is suspect although it looks okay to me. Keep it in your files for future use. Glad I could help.

Identifying legitimate emails from the iTunes Store

I would say that the emails are definitely from Apple and that someone was definitely attempting to get control of your account by changing the password. However, to change the password they need to provide the current password. The fact that you have received multiple motices from Apple would suggest that the person is in the process of trying to guess your current password and each notice would be a failed attempt. But if your password is something easily guessed by someone who knows you or if it is associated with some information someone can easily find out about you, I would strongly encounrage you to change the password to something unguessable.

Manage your Apple ID -

https://appleid.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/MyAppleId.woa/

Alphanumeric passwords with both random upper and lowercase letters would be very difficult for someone to guess. As an example;

BV7ktpYcj3yue7nzc26o

Yes, that would be difficult for you to remember, which is why folks are now going to password vault software. I have personally used 1Password for quite some time. It has both Mac and iOS versions, so I have all of my passwords synced to all of my devices. But if your Mac qualifies to use OS X Mavericks 10.9 when it comes out in a few months, I would not invest in one of the paid versions of a password vaults the new Mac OS, as well as the new version of iOS, version 7, will have this technology built into it as an extension of the Keychain software that is now part of OS X. But until then, Safari will store such strong passwords for you in your user account's keychain, it just won't generate them for you and it can't be easily synced to your other Macs, or to your iOS devices. Or you could store such strong passwords as a Secure Note in Keychain as well.

Sigh. And did you look at any of the advice already given on this discussion that will give you a solution? Such as:

HT5312 Re: I keep getting reset password emails i havent tried to reset and my email is not something that someone would accidently mistype

Andy from Cheadle wrote:

I'm having the same issue numerous times a day. I've gone from being an apple loyalist to being utterly disappointed.

This has nothing to do with Apple. Someone is trying to hack your Apple ID. Get it secured.

I just got off the phone with Apple and ... ya ready ... they don't even know there's a problem with passwords being reset. A total mystery to the guy I was talking to at Apple. Mine has been reset twice in the last five days.

I found all kinds of articles about the problem by doing a really complicated search using, "passwords being reset at apple", as the search criteria. Lots of info and articles to read about Apple's problem. That's how I came upon this link which, it would appear, is one of the newest link on the subject that Apple doesn't think exists.

Anyway, they've booted my password issue upstairs and supposidly I'll be getting an answer in the next couple of days. I'll update with any new info at that time.

Best of luck.

Mine wasn't changed, I just kept getting the stupid email saying a change request was made. Every time I downloaded or updated an app, I got the email. Even after changing my email through the view apple id in settings didn't help. Shortly after updating an app yesterday, I got another one of those emails! I complained to Apple on their feedback page. I wonder if I'll keep getting the emails if I change my apple id?

I've been getting a few of these messages a day as well, and a couple of times have been notified that my password has been successfully changed. All links in the emails look legit, makes me pretty nervous.

Any luck with a reply from Apple? I've been receiving emails consistently maybe once or twice a month for the last little while. It's driving me nuts and I hate changing my passwords all the time as well as my security questions 😟

Same problem. I am running out of passwords! Talking to a friend and my problem seems to be that I get that message whenever I try and log-in through an un-recognised device. In this case last night it was my girlfriend's ipad which is not a usual device I use. We have 2 ipads, an iPad mini, 3 i-phones and AppleTV, so not all can be registered against the same account, hence why it thinks someone is hacking it. I think 5 devices is the max you can register. I will have to get the O.H. to get her own account set up!

The only odd thing is similar to emtee where around 3 weeks ago I had an email saying I had purchased a game on my iphone. I don't generally game and i definitely didn't download this game (Bloody Harry). I thought my daughter may have, but she's 5 and has no idea what my password is, nor does my O.H.

Weird.

FWIW, I believe the issue must be related to the use of unfamiliar devices to access your Apple account. When I called Support, they specifically asked me that question, and when I answered that I had recently used a new device (iPad issued by employer for work, though of course I would never use a work device to do personal shopping at Apple, lol) that's when they said they were transferring me to their security department - at which point the transfer went to a line that was never answered after waiting for about 4 minutes for someone to p.up.

Also FWIW I created a new email account with my ISP and changed my Apple profile to start using this email for my Apple ID, and since then I've had none of those password emails from Apple. I've also been generally avoiding accessing my account from unfamiliar devices, though i have done so on a few occasions and so far no evil repercussions.

Hope that helps - you might have better luck w Support than I did, cuz they SEEMED to have a clue what the problem might be, but then they transferred me to nowhere and I never bothered to try again

Martin

Same here, I am getting 2at a time, getting to block up my emails....do Apple care? Do they have any advice on how to stop it. I am NOT going to,change my password. I have not changed anything on my apple iPad, no new device etc. Can apple advise what to do?

I too have an ipad, an ipad mini, mac book pro and and iphone registered against my apple ID and am now getting prompted to change my password every day. If I don't, I can't access my itunes account or my icloud!!

I want this to stop!