Can I change a passcode remotely on an iPhone

I recognize this post is old. But I think the issue is still pretty much alive and I hope I don't sound like trying to beat a dead horse... I also hope Jenny found the answer. After all, after 3 years, her kid has probably grown up and hopefully she won't need to resort to this locking mechanism to control the device(s).

With that said, I would like to chime in, just in case there are new comers (like I am) who want an answer.

I am from both worlds: iOS and Android, currently having control over 9 Galaxy devices and 2 Apple products, also a parent of children who 'naturally' attach to electronics, after looking high and low, left and right for quite some time, I can say this:

1. Google and Apple approach this issue the same way: They have Find My Device and Find My iPhone services respectively, they allow remotely locking their devices using the EXISTING secret key on the device. I don't want to debate the usefulness of this approach or the logic behind it, except to say that it doesn't suite my need, since anyone who knows the secret key can enter the devices again, thus defeating the remote lock feature.

2. Samsung, on the other hand, for their Galaxy devices, provides a service called Find My Mobile, this service does almost the same things as the other two above, but it also allows you to lock the device with a new key. So, you can literally repeatedly lock the device with a different key each time. I find it useful because the kids can have their own key, their key won't be overwritten or deleted, but once I lock the device, the new key I enter will take priority. The kids can't get back into their devices until either I manually unlock using the new key (thus keeping the key secret), or (this is the part that makes Samsung's Find My Mobile service useful) I remotely lock again with a known key i.e. 0000, then I can tell the kids to log in using the known key. This way, when I don't want anyone to use the devices, I lock them with a secret key only known by me. When I want someone to use the devices, I lock them with a key known by us. The entire time, the kids' own secret keys remain intact, just they the new secret key I enter takes priority. I really like this public/private key approach from Samsung.

One more thing: Both Samsung's FMM and Google's FMD services are easy to use on the web. Google has its own app to make it even easier. Apple, on the other hand, offers a lot of features once you log on the icloud account, but the FMiP page isn't mobile-friendly: to get to the Lost Mode, you have to click on the tiny green dot representing the device in question on the map, then try to click again on the equally tiny exclamation mark ⚠ to bring up a small popup to Ring, Lock (Lost Mode), and Erase the device. It is very difficult to click on these small icons on a phone screen. On computer this is fine, no problem. This FMiP is tailored for computer use, I can see that, but it kind of makes the service more difficult to use than its rivals'. (I could be wrong, since I only try Apple's FMiP on Chrome and Samsung's browser, Apple's Safari might behave better, I am not sure)

Sorry for the long post and it now sounds like I am giving a review of services from the major tech companies, but I thought I would want to be clear and thorough.

Thanks and please share your thoughts on this.

The answer to your problem is that you need to know their apple Id password. If you do, you can change their apple Id password, then erase their phone. The iPhone "Activation Lock" will only allow someone to activate the phone on the original Apple Id. So since you have changed the password, your difficult youth will not be able to reactivate it and will basically have a useless brick until they give it back. The downside is that you will no longer be able to track the phone. But your teen will be pretty annoyed at all this. Plus, the threat of this might make them think twice about abusing it since they might have messages, photos, and other data that might be meaningful to them. It will be quite a pain in their but. I would only use this as the nuclear option though.

That's useful information. The Samsung may be a better choice for parents who want or need this much control. However, it seems to me that this is a technical solution to a parenting problem (speaking as a Parent Emeritus). And it just addresses one of many parent-child interactions, as well as creating an adversarial relationship between parent and child. Another solution is to take the device away when you don't want the child using it. Another suggestion I have seen in the forum is to take the device away completely after repeated violations of parental rules, and just get a cheap flip phone for them to carry for safety.

But ideally, the goal should be to have a relationship of mutual respect between parents and their children, where the child will obey a parent's wishes out of respect rather than threats. The more obstacles you put in a child's way the more they will look for ways to overcome the obstacles. And they will succeed, because they have more time, energy and incentive to devote to doing so than the parent does. Each success is a badge of honor. Yes, sometimes children will stray from the ideal; that's part of growing up. They need to make their own mistakes. The goal should be to keep them safe, not micromanage their lives.

Well, Lawrence you have a point. I do have a parenting problem. Lol. And yes, obviously, when she gets home, the phone will get taken away.

My guess is the terrorist didn't have Parental Controls in effect, governing his use. So in this regard, I agree with Jennyf0x (the original poster). In conjunction with parental controls, this functionality would be nice to have, especially in cases where parents are footing the phone bill.

Hi there. I too thought I was being such a clever parent-of-a-teen by turning my daughter's iphone on Lost Mode. I even prided myself in the custom "You're grounded" message display. I was seriously giddy with delight; already anticipating the applause I would no-doubt receive from my other teen-parent friends. (I've literally never heard of doing this and thought surely I was the first parent, ever in the history of parents, to figure this out). But the glory of basking in my own genius was short lived. Maybe 8 seconds. Until I saw the phone was no longer in lost mode. I was like, wait, what? And then realized, duh, she entered her own passcode. Dangit!!! Not only does she win again, but it turns out I'm actually not a genius. I see this post is 2.5 years old...did you ever find a solution? Maybe your son is out of the teen phase by now and you don't need it anymore 😉

Lawrence Finch wrote:

But ideally, the goal should be to have a relationship of mutual respect between parents and their children, where the child will obey a parent's wishes out of respect rather than threats. The more obstacles you put in a child's way the more they will look for ways to overcome the obstacles. And they will succeed, because they have more time, energy and incentive to devote to doing so than the parent does. Each success is a badge of honor. Yes, sometimes children will stray from the ideal; that's part of growing up. They need to make their own mistakes. The goal should be to keep them safe, not micromanage their lives.

You have very lucky kids.

ksetterfield wrote:

My guess is the terrorist didn't have Parental Controls in effect, governing his use. So in this regard, I agree with Jennyf0x (the original poster). In conjunction with parental controls, this functionality would be nice to have, especially in cases where parents are footing the phone bill.

It seems unlikely that Apple would implement such a feature as it does make the phone significantly less secure. However, you can submit your suggestion here:

http://www.apple.com/feedback

You may also want to check with your mobile carrier. In the U.S., at least, the major carriers offer parental control services that may be useful. Also, you can probably log onto your account and suspend the phone. Even a suspended phone can still make 911 calls.

1. Simple answer is to have your telecom carrier (ATT, VZ, TMob, or whom ever) simply suspend service to the phone. Unfortunately I don't think they can "lock" out the non-phone-or-text goodies.
2. Logon to your icloud account and remove the phone from your account.

You can't change the passcode remotely.

I believe there is some software out there that will better enable you to manage the device but it is not made by Apple. Try google of some terms such as iphone remote management by parents.

There is no way to change a passcode remotely. If there was the FBI would not have had to pay nearly $1 million to get into a terrorist's phone. And the method they used won't work on the latest version of iOS.

What you have is a parenting problem, and no amount of technology can solve it. About the only useful solution is to take the phone away when you don't want them to use it.

Hi Meg! Thank for your suggestions. I agree, I would never want to implement a feature that would put the iPhone at a security risk. I can see why using this feature under "lost mode" would be an ineffective work-around. But perhaps as a standalone feature, available only within the scope of Parental Contols. Maybe a phone lock function that can only be enabled by the assigned parent when logged in with their Apple ID.

I will reach out to the carrier. As you said, there may already be a feature in place for this! Regardless of the means by which the phone is locked (whether by carrier, or device), I would want my kids to have the ability to call 911 (and, ideally, the parents specified in Parental Controls). I'm sure like most parents, my number one priority (and reason for giving my kids phones in the first place) is their safety! Thank you 🙂

Suspending the phone would still allow the kids to call 911 but not parents. Not exactly the solution you're looking for, I realize. Also, as long as the kid can access WiFi, there's still a lot they can do on the phone. People have suggested buying the ugliest flip phone possible and putting it on a cheap prepaid account. When the young person violates the rules, they get the iPhone confiscated but get the prepaid phone for safety. The embarrassment alone may make them think twice.

WharfRat72 wrote:

Logon to your icloud account and remove the phone from your account.

How does this help? It doesn't disable the phone in any way. It just means if the phone gets lost or stolen, there's no way to track or disable it.