How to reset forgotten Notes password on iPhone

I FIGURED IT OUT.

1. You have to reset your password for notes in settings (which still doesn’t unlock the old note you want)
2. Then turn on Face ID or Touch ID for notes.
3. Open a new note and type something to save the note and lock the new note you just made.
4. Once you lock the new note using the new password you just set up in step one go to your old locked note and open using Face ID or Touch ID !!!!!

IT WORKS!!!!!! Not sure how I thought of doing it this way but I have my old notes back!

Can you attach a screenshot of the pop-up, or provide the exact wording and description of its contents? This is what comes up when I attempt to open a locked note (using iOS 11.2.2):

Also, FYI - the password is your Lock Screen password - the one you put in when your Touch ID is not recognized. If you change your Lock Screen password, the locked note retains the original password.

One last thought - have you checked: Settings>Notes>Password, to make sure that Touch ID is turned on there still?

Thanks,

GB

Yes I read it and I tried it. And it seems that I’m not the only one having the same issue with the “solution”.

if it worked for you I’m glad. But doesn’t work for me.

Hi! Just in-case anyone else searches for this problem this worked for me using my Macbook Pro (without Touch ID) and Apple Watch.

1. Load up the Notes app. Find a locked note. Enter a wrong password a couple of times so the Reset Password button appears.
2. Reset your password. (Just go and do it. You can still open old locked notes with Touch, Face ID or Apple Watch)
3. Load up your old locked notes on a device with either Face or Touch ID, OR any Mac that supports "Use your Watch to unlock apps and your Mac" (The latter is what I did, FYI)
4. With the note unlocked and open click "remove lock", then "Lock Note". So you're basically 're-locking' with your new password.

That's it! Works for me. Initially I, god, went through each note copying and pasting the text into a new TextEdit document each time, adding the date and time from the note manually. This way I ended up with 48 TextEdit documents open. Let me tell ya... quitting that app and having to review each one clicking "DELETE" was a pain ontop of a multitude of pains caused by this. My plan being to delete the original locked notes and copy the old ones back in having to put up with the broken dates on them. I don't even know how this happened. I can only assume iOS at the time created one of those big long generated passwords for me and saved to Keychain. Well, my keychain did show a suspiciously generated password for Notes but entering that didn't work. Not sure what happened but now I'm done with that method above. Phew!

PS205 wrote:

Hi, I am having the same issue and when I went to Apple to get assistance, it was a useless attempt.

Please let me know if you figure a way to unlock your old notes. I really need to access mine.

Thanks,

P

There is no way to access them. As Apple has indicated in the article linked above:

If you forgot your notes password

You can unlock a note only when you enter the password that it's locked with. If you forgot your password, Apple can't help you regain access to your locked notes.

Abandon all hope, my friend....

GB

My issue is that I forgot my password hint to my notes so I can not view my old notes that are locked, I did everything...but my old notes are locked because I did not write down the password, I know the hint is US, but I tried the old password and it does not work

correction = “due to the fact”

Spell check keeps correcting my writing and replaces it when it’s not needed...too sensitive with the new iPhone update! And, after posting a reply I can’t simply go back in to edit it. Bummer! And, major flaw! 🙁

Here is Apple's article regarding locking and unlocking notes: Keep your notes secure with password-protection - Apple Support

This is a current article which clearly states you can use your Touch ID if you set it up that way when you locked the notes. So, not sure what issue you are running into. Can you explain what is happening exactly?

And no one was implying that anyone has been stupid.

GB

sbfromcalifornia wrote:

I am having the same issue! The older notes were Touch ID -- I never set up a numerical ID. Didn't occur to me that upgrading to the X would mean I would have neither Touch nor numerical. Lesson learned.

Anyone know a work around for this?

Sorry, but you had to set up a password in order to lock your Notes:

Set up your notes password

Before you can lock your notes, create a password that you can easily remember. If you're concerned about forgetting your password, make sure that you give yourself a password hint and that you set up Touch ID or Face ID. If you forget your password, Apple can't help you reset it.

From this support article: Keep your notes secure with password-protection - Apple Support

Try any password that you might have used. Your Lock Screen password, a random password. Do you have Face ID set up on your "X". If you don't, set it up and see if that will open your note.

Best of luck,

GB

kasie176 wrote:

How do you cut and paste notes?

What does that have to do with the topic of this thread?

See this article for information on how to edit text on an iOS device:

Type and edit text on iPhone - Apple Support

.. this is a HUGE oversight

Actually, this is excellent security.

Did you enter a password hint when you created your password?

Feedback for Apple goes here >>> http://www.apple.com/feedback/.

If you have forgotten your password, you are not going to be able to see the note.

There is no “backdoor” or other “reset” once a Notes password has been set.

Sorry.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205794

Sorry, but there is no recovery method.

Notes are already secured by multiple layers of cryptologically secure - but recoverable - means.

Adding an additional password is an optional, “extra security layer” for which the user takes full responsibility for recovery.

See following iOS User Guide excerpt:

Important: If you forget your notes password, and you can’t use Face ID or Touch ID to unlock your notes, you won’t be able to view your locked notes, and Apple can’t help you regain access to those locked notes.

Ref: https://support.apple.com/en-au/guide/iphone/iphf177bb154/ios

SOLUTION

You need to follow these steps, writed above:

On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch:

1. Go to Settings > Notes > Password.
2. Tap Reset Notes Password.
3. Enter your Apple ID password.
4. Tap Reset Notes Password again.
5. Enter your new password and password hint.

Then

Go to notes:

1. Create a new note

2. Lock these new note with your new password

3. Open these new note with your face id to test

4. Open the old locked note with your face id (A note that you have forgotten a password)

5. That's it!

There are so many posts about locked Notes problem, and I can’t read every single one of them. As we all know by now that resetting Notes password doesn’t fix this issue. Here is what I did to “transfer” locked Notes from my 6S to XS.

I have over 100 Notes on my 6S and about 25 of them are locked. I still can open locked Notes on 6S with finger print ID. However, I could not open same locked Notes on my XS. It kept asking for password.

Here is is what I did.

1. On 6S, I opened the locked Note using finger print ID. Once it’s opened, I added “- New” on the title (top line). I did this because there will be two same Notes when I copy it onto XS.
2. While it’s opened, I unlocked the Note.
3. Using Airdrop, I transferred the Note from 6S to XS. Now I have two Notes on my XS. One with original name/title and lock, and the other with “- New” on title with no lock.
4. Repeated Step #3 for all locked Notes.
5. Once all locked Notes were transferred, I reserved the Notes password on my XS using Face ID.
6. I deleted the one with lock.
7. Removed “- New” from the title of unlocked Note.
8. Add lock to the Note using Face ID.

It took several steps to accomplish this but a lot more convenient than retyping all locked Notes contents.