A number of new iPhone 7 buyers have started reporting that they are locked out of their new flagship handset. Users have reported unboxing their new iPhone only to find out that it’s already locked to someone else’s Apple ID. With the introduction of Activation Lock in iOS 7, the original Apple ID owner must enter their password before the iPhone can be set-up.
“Just received my brand new 256GB Jet Black iPhone 7 Plus. Looks immaculate, screen is perfect, machining all fine… Only problem is, it appears someone has already used it as the iPhone is asking for the account used to activate it — o…..@icloud.com. Apple say it needs replacing […] Now got to wait for an expedited replacement iPhone once I’ve returned this one.”
This feature of course is meant to deter theft, but it looks like it’s also preventing buyers from setting up new phones. Clearly this is some kind of glitch, but for the most part it is only affecting iPhone 7 devices. Although, there have been a few reports of the glitch occurring on the 6s.
Currently, Apple hasn’t acknowledged the issue publicly. If you’ve ran into the issue, your only hopes now are to head to your local Apple Store or contact their support team by phone at 1-800-MY-APPLE (1-800-692-7753).
