Can't enable iCloud backup on my iPhone

parks34 wrote:

If I connect the phone to my desktop and attempt backup through iTunes, it tells be that Administrator has disabled iCloud backup on the device.

I don't know if I have any ideas yet, but I'm curious about this statement.

1. Are you the original owner of this phone?
2. Is it a company phone?
3. DId Apple have any insight on this at all?

Do you have a company or work email account on the device? Are you part of a company or work managed deployment? Either one of those situations allows your employer to over-ride default settings and set in place their own security and settings policy. Many employers will not allow company account information to be stored or backed up on non-company hardware or services.

Can you backup in iTunes though? Just an option, if it works, so you can keep a backup of your data for disaster recovery. Otherwise, ask your work IT folks. If they are not familiar with iCloud backups and are worried about security, show them iCloud security and privacy overview - Apple Support so they do understand that iCloud backups are encrypted, and the transmission of the data to and from the device is also over wholly end-to-end encrypted connectIons.

With iTunes backups, their policy certificate is likely to require an encrypted iTunes backup, so make careful note of the encryption password and store it somewhere safe and secure as without it, you can never restore from that backup.

parks34 wrote:

As Michael Black has noted, I believe the mystery, if not the problem for me, has been solved.

I agree, but that was what I was leading up to by asking if it was a company phone. If you are able to backup and sync with iTunes, you are covered there.