There are articles across the internet that describe the new security and anti-theft process that Apple has included in iOS 7. One such article was written by iMore's own Rene Ritchie.
One of the most innovative features of this process, dubbed Activation Lock, is the ability to prevent a thief (or more likely, the person to whom the thief sells your iPhone, iPad or iPod) from simply wiping the device and then installing a fresh copy of iOS and using the device as their own.
To do this, Apple requires that the user log out of the Apple ID account, using the Apple ID password prior to being able to reuse the device. The thought here is that the thief is unlikely to know the original owner’s Apple ID credentials, and, because they are unable to re-activate the device, the device becomes nothing more than a stylish paperweight.
But what happens when you upgrade to a new device? How do you resell your current device and ensure that the new owner is able to activate it for their own use? Are you forced to give the new owner your Apple ID credentials?
While that would certainly allow the new owner to activate your old device, it’s not the best solution – because now they have the information necessary to access your iTunes store accounts as well as access to other Apple services associated with your account.
Fortunately, Apple has provided a much better solution for that situation. The process is simple – as the soon-to-be-previous owner of that device, you simply log out of your Apple ID account prior to wiping the device. As long as you do so, there will be no prompt for any login credentials prior to the device being activated for the new user.
Activation lock has already been put through its paces by various law enforcement organizations around the country, including the San Francisco District Attorney. While it shows promise, the final verdict on this solution will have to wait to see how well Activation Lock performs, long term, in the real world.
[TIP]To log out of your iCloud account, go to Settings > iCloud. Scroll to the bottom of the page and tap the Delete Account button (this step only deletes the iCloud account from your device - it does NOT delete the iCloud account). Confirm your selection, and then you will be prompted to enter your iCloud password. You must enter that password successfully to proceed.[/TIP]
One of the most innovative features of this process, dubbed Activation Lock, is the ability to prevent a thief (or more likely, the person to whom the thief sells your iPhone, iPad or iPod) from simply wiping the device and then installing a fresh copy of iOS and using the device as their own.
To do this, Apple requires that the user log out of the Apple ID account, using the Apple ID password prior to being able to reuse the device. The thought here is that the thief is unlikely to know the original owner’s Apple ID credentials, and, because they are unable to re-activate the device, the device becomes nothing more than a stylish paperweight.
But what happens when you upgrade to a new device? How do you resell your current device and ensure that the new owner is able to activate it for their own use? Are you forced to give the new owner your Apple ID credentials?
While that would certainly allow the new owner to activate your old device, it’s not the best solution – because now they have the information necessary to access your iTunes store accounts as well as access to other Apple services associated with your account.
Fortunately, Apple has provided a much better solution for that situation. The process is simple – as the soon-to-be-previous owner of that device, you simply log out of your Apple ID account prior to wiping the device. As long as you do so, there will be no prompt for any login credentials prior to the device being activated for the new user.
Activation lock has already been put through its paces by various law enforcement organizations around the country, including the San Francisco District Attorney. While it shows promise, the final verdict on this solution will have to wait to see how well Activation Lock performs, long term, in the real world.
[TIP]To log out of your iCloud account, go to Settings > iCloud. Scroll to the bottom of the page and tap the Delete Account button (this step only deletes the iCloud account from your device - it does NOT delete the iCloud account). Confirm your selection, and then you will be prompted to enter your iCloud password. You must enter that password successfully to proceed.[/TIP]
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