i have photos videos and contacts in my disabled iphone6, sinking into depression. please help.

Hi,

You will have to erase the iPhone but you can restore from a backup.

Instructions > If you forgot the passcode for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, or your device is disabled - Apple Support

If you set up a new passcode after you restore, make sure to write it down and store in a safe place.

A reply from them is unfortunately going to give you the same response. If you did not backup the device, the content is lost. Once the device is disabled, the only way to recover it is to restore it. Had you made a backup, you could have restored your content. This does show the importance of keeping a current backup. I'm sorry.

Hi

When using iCloud Photo Library (as opposed to iCloud backups), photos and videos from iPhone are also safely stored in iCloud. To check whether this option was enabled on your iPhone:

Sign in using your Apple ID at https://www.iCloud.com and open Photos.

Similarly, if iCloud Contacts was enabled on your iPhone (Settings > iCloud - Contacts), then your contacts are also stored in iCloud. To check whether this option was enabled:

Sign in to iCloud.com and open Contacts.

If you were not using either of these services, then you may wish to consider doing so as part of your future plans - in addition to making regular iCloud and/or iTunes-based backups.

More information:

iCloud Photo Library - Apple Support

http://www.apple.com/icloud/

How to back up your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch - Apple Support

The services that I referred to (iCloud Photo Library and iCloud Contacts) are not the same thing as an iCloud backup.

If you were also (besides not making backups) not using those services, then - for future reference - you may find the links helpful in understanding the differences.

I don't mean to make light of your issues here, but if you remember correctly, Apple couldn't even assist the FBI in getting into an iPhone. That feat cost the US taxpayers over $1.2 million dollars to have done. The whole issue about privacy is what is driving these issues. It is the responsibility of the end user to manage their data, not the device manufacturer. There are trade-offs. If you want to be able to access your data no matter what, then anyone can access it. If you want privacy, then you need to archive your data.

ch j wrote:

pray that in the near future Apple can have this enhancing feature of allowing us to click on 'forgotten passcode and phone disabled help' for people like us..

That would negate the point of the password.

ch j wrote:

pray that in the near future Apple can have this enhancing feature of allowing us to click on 'forgotten passcode and phone disabled help' for people like us..

That's not going to happen. Your device passcode and fingerprint only live in storage on the device itself. They are purely local device locks so there is no possibility of any remote reset or recovery. And that is by design. The moment you engineer any ability to remote reset a local device passcode, the security of that device is compromised. If Apple could reset it remotely, then someone else could too, and sooner or later someone would. Then we'd see posts of people complaining their device passcode had been remotely reset by some criminal who was now demanding payment to release the data back to the owner - exactly the scenario that is becoming alarmingly common with things like hospital servers and other sensitive data systems that can have their security modified remotely.

ch j wrote:

From 28 August I have been drifting along and it's tough on myself n my kids. I am now using a Samsung phone and holding on to the disabled iPhone waiting for help praying for it..

Some asked me to move on but it's tough really tough

Can't even smile much less laugh..

I hope iphone users know of this disabling feature and be cautious not to be locked out of their precious memories - photos, videos and contacts by themselves like me - a fool

I'm not trying to be flip but if you're so concerned about your phone that it's starting to affect your ability to care for your children, you should consider seeking professional help. Your reaction is grossly out of proportion to the situation. By pining over lost photos, you're missing real opportunities that are right in front of you to enjoy your children.