I forgot my password for an old note in Notes

[Bill Gatin]

I just got an iPhone 13 and found that I need a password for my notes now even though I can lock them and use Face ID. How do I just turn off passwords altogether? I tried going to Settings > Notes > Passwords and then Reset Password for On My iPhone and iCloud and it's not helping at all. My hint is vague. I guess I was being stupid at the time...

 

[now i see it]

If a note is locked with a password you’ve forgotten, then it’s not retrievable. Applying a lock on a note encrypts it. Only way to decode the encryption is with the password key.

If you want to unlock a Note and not have it lock anymore, you can remove the lock from the option at the top right of the screen - but you’ve got to unlock it before you can remove the lock.

 

[Bill Gatin]

Oof. So they forced me to permently lock my most important note without informing me of the consequences? INGENIOUS!

 

[Lihp8270]

Oof. So they forced me to permently lock my most important note without informing me of the consequences? INGENIOUS!

I mean. The whole idea of password protecting a file is that it’s not retrievable without the password.

 

[PhillyGuy72]

I've had this problem before, (I thought my Note was also backed up in iCloud, but no)

I know it won't help now...but for the future.
The second time I added the Note...and again apparently forgetting the darn password - eyeroll-, I did made a second copy in a .TXT file.

Deleted the locked note, copied pasted the .txt file into NEW note. Locked the note again, and wrote the PW down on a PostIt note...no one should know (i guess) what that string of jumbled words means except me.