Your Apple ID contains everything important in your digital life: your iCloud backups, your purchased apps, your photos, and your iMessage history. Apple uses advanced security to protect this account, which usually requires two-factor authentication.
However, if you forget your Apple ID password and you happen to lose your trusted iPhone at the exact same time (for example, if your phone is stolen while travelling), you can become permanently locked out of your own account. To prevent this nightmare scenario, Apple allows you to designate a “Trusted Contact” for account recovery.
If you are ever locked out, your Trusted Contact can generate a secure six-digit recovery code on their own Apple device, which you can use to bypass the lock and regain access to your account.
How to Add a Recovery Contact
A Trusted Contact must be someone you trust implicitly—like a spouse, a parent, or a best friend. They must be over the age of 13 and own an Apple device (iPhone, iPad, or Mac) running modern software.
Note: Your Recovery Contact cannot view your photos, read your messages, or access your account at any time. They only have the ability to generate the recovery code when you explicitly ask them for it.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
- Tap on your Name/Apple ID at the very top of the screen.
- Tap on Sign-In & Security (on older iOS versions, this is called “Password & Security”).
- Tap on Account Recovery.
- Under the “Recovery Assistance” section, tap on Add Recovery Contact.
- Authenticate with Face ID, Touch ID, or your device passcode.
- Follow the on-screen prompts to search your contacts and select your trusted person.
Once you select them, your iPhone will send them an iMessage asking if they accept the responsibility of being your recovery contact. They must accept this request on their device before the setup is complete.
If disaster ever strikes and you are completely locked out, you can visit Apple’s recovery website or use a new Apple device and follow the prompts. When it asks for a recovery code, you simply call your Trusted Contact, have them go to their own Apple ID settings to generate the code, and type it into your screen to regain your digital life.