Someone is using my email address for their Apple ID

Question

Someone is using my email address for their Apple ID

Hi.

Some months ago, I got my first Apple product. I tried to create an Apple ID using my email address. Problem is, it's already being used by another Apple ID which is not mine!

I go to https://iforgot.apple.com/ - type my email address (**@gmail.com) and press next. I get two options:

Get an email: We will send instructions to your email address ending in online.no
Answer security questions: Answer the question(s) you chose when you created your Apple ID.

The first one is impossible - I do not own a ***@online.no address. My theory is that this ******* person has my e-mail address as some kind of secondary e-mail address for his Apple ID.

The second one is also impossible - How can I know these answers?

I tried calling support about this a while ago. They just asked me about the answer to the security questions. I had to be elevated twice before they started to fathom what was the issue here, someone has hijacked my email address. But without the answers to the security questions, they couldn't help me. I asked them if they could see the ridiculousness of this, and no, they couldn't. *sigh*

I had put this issue to rest until I got the email I just received "confirm your email address" giving a code to verify some ****.

This thing just make me boil. Someone is using my email address. And there's nothing I can do about it??? I own the ****** email address, I should therefore own the Apple ID associated to it!

Posted on May 2, 2016 5:11 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Stephen Donovan

Level 1

30 points

Jan 7, 2017 11:40 AM in response to ColonelKermit

I dread the day that this happens to me. People routinely screw ups their email and use mine instead. The most recent was a former US marine who entered my Gmail account instead of his own for a job website. The site didn't confirm the email, so we both had access to his profile and I was unable to lock him out by changing the password. It was a bizarre scenario.

One thing you may consider, walk into your local Apple Store, if you have one and find a sales drone. Indicate that you are interested in buying a top end MacBook or MacPro and want help setting up your Apple ID on it. See if they have some method of escalating the issue to complete the sale. Once your Apple ID has been fixed, return the product / cancel the sale.

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Answer 2

Jan 7, 2017 4:38 AM in response to ManSinha

I have the exact same problem !!! I wanted to switch from Android to iOS a year ago and found out my gmail address was already used for an apple account. My gmail address was created early on and it is one that is quite simple and popular. I decided to go back to android as I do NOT want to use another email. I simply want MY EMAIL to be used for my APPLE account. These days I am considering the option of buying an iphone7 but I remebered I cannot create an apple account because of this stupid problem. I have switched then the password and I have tried now again to reset Security Questions but I cannot as it seems I need to first know the answers of the questions I NEVER put !!!!

It is a serious matter and I do not understand why apple takes it so lightly...

For me this is the reason I do not switch to APPLE and it is infuriating. Please tell me that from May 2016 up to now you have figured out a way to solve this stupidity of a problem !

Thank you,

Alexandra

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Answer 3

Jan 7, 2017 5:48 AM in response to ColonelKermit

Just trying to grasp the complexity of this.

When you send an email to ***@online.no does it bounce back? If not, then your evil twin might be receiving and reading what you send. Maybe this is an opportunity for negotiation?

Probably over-optimistic, I know

wrg

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Answer 4

ManSinha

Level 6

12,177 points

May 2, 2016 9:48 AM in response to ColonelKermit

I see your issue - but consider this

The person who is indeed using it - is now stuck as they have no way of really getting that code - hopefully they realize that and delete that email address from their profile

The issue is bizarre to say the least - rescue emails have to be ones that an individual can get to

If I were you I would set an extraordinarily complicated password for that email address - and note it down in a safe place - just so that someone else has minimal chance of guessing it and usurping ownership

If you forgot the answers to your Apple ID security questions - Apple Support

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Answer 5

May 2, 2016 12:57 PM in response to ManSinha

It's a small consolation . From time to time I do the "forget password" option like 20 - 30 times in a row, spamming his ***@online.no address. But so far no result ...

I already have a very strong password as well as two factor authentication for my gmail-address, so I'm not particularly worried there.

What ****** me off is how on earth I cannot reset the password for this Apple ID when I am the owner of the email address attached to it. Then I could log on, see the phone number, ring it up, and solve the whole thing. I have a very common name and people misspell their email address to mine like 10-20 times per year. But I have never experienced any routine as rigid as Apple's, where someone can actually use my email for their account, and there's nothing I can do about it.

I even asked the support people if I could get the phone number of this account and call it to solve the issue. But no. They couldn't even call on my behalf.

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Answer 6

ManSinha

Level 6

12,177 points

May 6, 2016 9:19 AM in response to ColonelKermit

Unfortunately - that last bit translates into privacy issues - and Apple steers well clear of that

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