Backing up without AppleID / iTunes?

[efiddle]

So, here's the tricky situation I'm trying to solve for someone I work for who wants her iPhone backed up but there are some caveats:

• She has an iPhone 11 & cannot log into her me.com email/AppleID
• She had accidentally changed the password & she and others have called Apple support & haven't been able to recover it (I think the recovery phone # no longer exists). She doesn't want me to give her a new AppleID in case we somehow find a way to recover the existing one down the line....
• I have backed up the images/videos by attaching it to the Mac she uses that uses the same AppleID; however, I've only been able to back that up and the email (because the email is downloaded into the Mac Mail program)
• I can't use iTunes because it requires logging into the AppleID. I can't log into iCloud.com either, again, because of the AppleID issue.
• She doesn't want me to use a 3rd party backup program because she hasn't heard of the company's (any out there that are definitely trustworthy entities?)
• I don't know if by attaching a lightning port USB thumb drive if the iPhone would let me copy more items off, but I can say that when I attached one, it needed an app, which I couldn't download due to needing the AppleID.

Any thoughts/suggestions are much appreciated!

Many thanks,

Ethan

 

[0128672]

The part about "she and others have called Apple ..." doesn't quite add up. Apple would not be willing to talk with anyone but the account holder when it comes to an Apple ID recovery issue, except in the very specific case of the owner being deceased. Why doesn't using https://iforgot.apple.com/password/verify/appleid work for her?

 

[NoBoMac]

Pretty much out of luck.

Can try iMazing to get a backup. But not all data in apps will get backed up (that's controlled by the app developer), apps don't get backed up, as you can get those from the App Store. Can get text messages.

iPhones do not act like USB storage devices, so, can't copy data via USB cable.

But with a locked Apple ID, an iPhone is almost a brick. Can't get app updates, iCloud Messages (eg. cross device syncing, blue bubbles) can't happen, iCloud "backup" of Contacts, Calendar, Reminder, Notes, etc.

Best bets are to do as @WildSky said. Or get a new Apple ID. If the old one is recovered, can always restore the backup you currently have (or: sign-out of new and go back to old, but that causes a different set of issues in that the apps installed under the new ID will require the user to sign into the new account to get updates, so, probably easier to restore the old backup).

 

[efiddle]

The part about "she and others have called Apple ..." doesn't quite add up. Apple would not be willing to talk with anyone but the account holder when it comes to an Apple ID recovery issue, except in the very specific case of the owner being deceased. Why doesn't using https://iforgot.apple.com/password/verify/appleid work for her?

Well, that phrase is a matter of interpretation. What I meant to say by "she and others" is that she made at least some of the calls with the presence of others who were more tech savvy and could help better explain her situation. I believe the recover didn't work because her phone number on file was no longer an active number. Thanks for your thoughts though....

 

[efiddle]

Pretty much out of luck.

Can try iMazing to get a backup. But not all data in apps will get backed up (that's controlled by the app developer), apps don't get backed up, as you can get those from the App Store. Can get text messages.

iPhones do not act like USB storage devices, so, can't copy data via USB cable.

But with a locked Apple ID, an iPhone is almost a brick. Can't get app updates, iCloud Messages (eg. cross device syncing, blue bubbles) can't happen, iCloud "backup" of Contacts, Calendar, Reminder, Notes, etc.

Best bets are to do as @WildSky said. Or get a new Apple ID. If the old one is recovered, can always restore the backup you currently have (or: sign-out of new and go back to old, but that causes a different set of issues in that the apps installed under the new ID will require the user to sign into the new account to get updates, so, probably easier to restore the old backup).

Thanks! I suspected as well that this was the case: "iPhones do not act like USB storage devices, so, can't copy data via USB cable." As noted, all that is backed up at the moment is the photos/videos and email.

 

[0128672]

Well, that phrase is a matter of interpretation. What I meant to say by "she and others" is that she made at least some of the calls with the presence of others who were more tech savvy and could help better explain her situation. I believe the recover didn't work because her phone number on file was no longer an active number. Thanks for your thoughts though....

Ah I see what you mean, others were present but didn't make inquiries on her behalf. A recovery phone number isn't the only option, so that's why I wondered what else in the iforgot process was discussed with Apple, including her security questions and answers.

 

[NoBoMac]

You'll need something like iMazing to see if you have other data backed up in the one you have, as that won't (generally) show in Finder/iTunes backups. With a 3rd party tool, can view all the other stuff that might be in the backup. Eg. Calendar, Contacts, Messages (see image).

Might help to know what other data you are looking to recover. As mentioned, can't backup apps and restore them. Some app data will not be backed up. Some music might be recoverable, but depends on where the music was acquired from or synced from (ie. Apple Music, Amazon Music, downloaded from PC/Mac/other).