How to Erase iPhone Before Selling It?

Data security and privacy are getting the required spotlight these days, and rightly so. Given that iPhones have sensitive data, ensuring data security must be one of our top priorities.

While there are many ways (intentional or unintentional) you can lose your data or let others gain access to it, it’s important to be aware of the risk of unauthorized access or misuse of your information when this happens.

Therefore, it is crucial that you transfer all necessary information to your new device or any other storage media and then wipe all data from your existing iPhone before selling, trading in, or donating it. Alternatively, you can also take a complete backup on iCloud or iTunes, to ensure you have full backup of all the contents.

It is not the best practice to manually delete your contacts, documents, calendars, reminders, photos, or any other iCloud-related information before taking back up. Such an action would delete your content from the iCloud servers and any devices linked to your iCloud account.

This blog explains how to erase iPhone data before selling it using Erase All Content feature in iPhone or via iPhone data eraser tool.

How to erase iPhone before selling it?

It is vital to know how to reset your iPhone before selling it or giving it away to someone. Below are the steps you must follow.

Step 1: Backup Your iPhone

If you want to sell or give away your iPhone, it is essential to back up your data. This way, you can ensure that your content is intact and can be retrieved later. Here’s how you can back up your iPhone:

iCloud Backup:

One of the simplest methods to safeguard your data is by backing it up on iCloud. Typically, your iPhone is already synchronized with iCloud, but it is advisable to verify this to be sure. To determine if your iCloud backup is already enabled, follow these steps:

• Launch the ‘Settings’ app on your iPhone.

• Click on the first list, i.e., your name (Apple ID, iCloud, Media & Purchases).

• Tap on the ‘iCloud’ option.

• Find the ‘iCloud Backup’ option and tap on it.

• Turn on ‘iCloud Backup’ if it is disabled.

• Underneath the iCloud Backup, you will find ‘Back Up Now’. Tap the option to start backing up your data manually.

The above-mentioned process will work only for standard iCloud accounts if your data does not exceed 5GB. Please note that Apple’s free plan provides only 5GB of iCloud storage. Therefore, consider a storage subscription for higher data volumes.

Step 2: Deregister From iMessage

Another essential step is to deregister from iMessage when selling or giving away your iPhone. Deregistering and turning off iMessage ensures you receive messages only on your new device.

Step 3: Sign out of iCloud

Initiating an inside-out iPhone reset requires one immediate action— signing out of iCloud, which removes your iCloud account from the device and disables Apple’s activation lock.

There are two ways to sign out of your iCloud account: when you have access to your iPhone and when you don’t have access to your device and want to sign out remotely.

Here are the steps you may follow to sign out of your iCloud account:

When You Have Access to Your iPhone

Go to Settings, find your name, and then click Sign Out.

Remotely – When you don’t have access to your iPhone

In case your iPhone is stolen or you don’t have access to it due to some reason, you can also log out of your account remotely. All you need to do is to visit icloud.com and sign in to remove the device from the list.

Here are the steps:

1. Sign in to icloud.com
2. Click on Find My iPhone and select Remove from Account after choosing the device.

Step 4: Factory Reset Your iPhone

Again, you can reset your iPhone in two ways—when you have your iPhone handy and remotely.

Here are the steps to reset your iPhone:

When You Have Access to Your iPhone

• Launch ‘Settings’ on your iPhone.

• Find and tap ‘General’.

• From here, click ‘Transfer or Reset iPhone.

• Now, click ‘Erase All Content and Settings’.

• Finally, click ‘Continue’.

This should do the job for you and will erase iPhone to sell. As mentioned earlier, you can also remotely clear iPhone before selling. Here’s how to erase iPhone data remotely:

1. Again, sign in to icloud.com.
2. Click the Find My iPhone icon.
3. Select the device from the drop-down menu.
4. Now, select Erase (Device).

In this process, Apple will send a verification code to your phone number or another Apple device that has the same iCloud account. Therefore, ensure you are able to verify using any of the methods to reset your device.

How to Erase iPhone Data Using Stellar iPhone Data Eraser?

Various iOS cleaner applications on the Apple Store help remove data and documents from iPhones. These tools scan your iPhone for specific applications, such as Photos, Contacts, iMessage, etc. and clean the data.

Some of these applications do the job for you, and many fail to erase your iPhone to the degree you wish them to delete.

For complete and permanent erasure of sensitive files from your iPhone, you may try Stellar iPhone Data Eraser. The software provides a robust and reliable solution to ensure the security and confidentiality of personal information. The data eraser software securely erases apps, photos, documents, cache, cookies, and other files from your iPhone.

Conclusion

It’s important to erase all your data to protect your privacy and ensure your data is not accessible to malicious user. The steps detailed here will ensure that your data is wiped completely and your privacy is protected. You may also choose an efficient and user-friendly tool like Stellar iPhone Data Eraser software to securely erase your confidential data. The software is reliable, trustworthy, and reasonably priced, given its exceptional capabilities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Will erasing the iPhone delete photos from iCloud?

Yes. Photos get deleted from iCloud when you erase the iPhone.

Q2. What happens when I erase a device in iCloud Find Devices?

Apple sends a confirmation email to your Apple ID email address. The Activation Lock remains on to protect it.

Q3. How do I know if my iPhone has been erased?

Sign in to your iCloud account and go to Find My iPhone. Tap on the All Devices drop-down; if your iPhone has been erased, it will not show in the list.

Q4. How to erase iPhone beyond the scope of recovery?

Use iPhone Erasure tool like Stellar Eraser for iPhone to permanently delete or remove your iPhone data beyond the scope of recovery.

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About The Author

Aruna Attri

Aruna Attri is a Senior Data Recovery Expert at Stellar®. She is a technology blogger and Windows expert. She has experience in Windows data recovery domain. She loves to troubleshoot Windows issue and write technical tips and tutorials.