Iphone Activation Lock

oldernonethewiser

renegadefm wrote: »

oldernonethewiser, seems that way doesnt it?

I just tend to think theres no dirty play involved here, I think the seller genuinely forgot to disable activation lock before shutting down the phone. In my case a very expencive mistake, but highlights how easy it is for buyers of Apple stuff it is to fall victim of their products. I definetly won't be buying anything connected to Apple again.

Somewhat of a dramatic stance to take but it's your money.


Buyers don't "fall victim" of their products. Apple have a robust system in place to protect their products and the users of them.

DCFC79

You could of course go to the same car boot on the same day and see if you can see the seller but it will only work of you can remember the guy or even if they ae still going to the car boot.

d123

renegadefm wrote: »

There must be a way to disassociate the phone to the original owner, otherwise this is an over the top protection thing from Apple. Surely thousands of buyers fall into this trap?

You do realise that Android has the same feature?

https://www.mazumamobile.com/activation-lock-android/

Pepperwood

There's no way of getting around the activation lock feature unless the person that owns the Apple ID can login (they can do it online) and removes the phone from their iCloud account. If they're not willing to help then they've scammed you.

It's not Apple's fault, it's a security feature to protect consumers.

renegadefm

I cant go back to the same car boot as it wasent anywhere near where we live, we just stopped by there when we were visiting relatives before Christmas.
But I do genuinely feel the sellers were innocent in this, what I mean is I think its a case of they simply forgot to take off the activation lock because they showed it to me as working, then just turned it off to put in the box. I didnt think any foul play was happening.

I just think its an over the top feature if it renders the phone as useless even uf its lost or stolen, its no benefit or comfort to the original owner if its useless or if someone is wrongfully using it, but in this case its backfired on the buyer which is wrong to me.

oldernonethewiser

renegadefm wrote: »

I cant go back to the same car boot as it wasent anywhere near where we live, we just stopped by there when we were visiting relatives before Christmas.
But I do genuinely feel the sellers were innocent in this, what I mean is I think its a case of they simply forgot to take off the activation lock because they showed it to me as working, then just turned it off to put in the box. I didnt think any foul play was happening.

I just think its an over the top feature if it renders the phone as useless even uf its lost or stolen, its no benefit or comfort to the original owner if its useless or if someone is wrongfully using it, but in this case its backfired on the buyer which is wrong to me.

It is of great benefit to the original owner as their data are protected which can keep their information, log-ins, photos etc safe.


Given the price the seller was charging I think it may well have been a scam.

renegadefm

If its a scam why did they show it to me as working, plus they said they wiped any photos off.
I just tend to think if its stolen the person who stole it arn't going to be concerned about photos etc. Surely the thing to do is back up your stuff regularly, rather than rendure the phone as useless, I just find it too extreme, but then I guess my feelings are influenced by the fact I'm a victim this time. I have basically bought a phone that is now no use to anyone which is a waste of money.

oldernonethewiser

renegadefm wrote: »

If its a scam why did they show it to me as working, plus they said they wiped any photos off.
I just tend to think if its stolen the person who stole it arn't going to be concerned about photos etc. Surely the thing to do is back up your stuff regularly, rather than rendure the phone as useless, I just find it too extreme, but then I guess my feelings are influenced by the fact I'm a victim this time. I have basically bought a phone that is now no use to anyone which is a waste of money.

The price for the phone is the biggest red flag for me.



I think anyone who has their phone stolen may well be concerned that a thief is going to be able to access their bank accounts, if they use banking apps for example. Backing up a phone makes no difference to this whatsoever.



It is understandable that you are annoyed however the system in place is designed to protect the owner.

renegadefm

The price didnt come into question at the time because I assumed iphones are expencive, my knowledge was slim about iphones.

I'm just puzzled if it was a scam the sellers must have known the activation ID or any passwords to let me see it working, plus they seemed a genuine family with kids and everything. But then I suppose that doesnt mean a thing these days.

Oh well theres nothing I can do, I may aswell throw it in the bin. I was just hoping some wiz kid on here knew a way around this. I certainly cant find any info on google.

vacheron

I believe it was genuine. Most personal phone sellers don't know that the Apple account security needs to be disabled before they sell it. Generally it is the experienced buyer that informs the seller!

Even if you send your phone to Apple for repair they require you to switch off the "Find my iPhone" feature first.

I recently sold my old iPhone 6S to Argos for £175, there were extensive instructions on how to reset it before sending and plenty warnings that non-reset phones would be immediately returned.

I don't agree that it is an "over the top" feature either as many people have their whole lives on the phone and, aside from the personal intrusion, could you imagine the increase in robberies and muggings if criminals knew that any stolen phone could be "easily" unlocked and then re-sold for hundreds of pounds?

The only way it could be a scam is if they didn't unlock the phone first (because they couldn't) but if they could, they could also erase the phone to sell it anyway, so I think it is a genuine mistake. The only other possibility is slight of hand, excchanging an unlocked "demo" for a locked phone at some point before handing it over to you.


The only hope (and I appreciate it would be very inconvenient) would be to re-visit the car boot in the hope you can recognise the seller again, If they are genuine I'm sure they would then unlock and erase it for you. For £200 it's certainly worth a try!

If you don't succeed, buy one from CEX or Music Magpie with a warranty for £90.