When the phone belonged to someone who died
8 minute read · intermediate
Neither Apple nor Google will hand a surviving relative the passcode. Both can hand over some of the account — easily if the person set it up in advance, slowly and with documents if they did not. The phone itself stays account-locked until that process finishes, so do not erase it first.
Erasing the phone does not get you in. It triggers the account lock and destroys the only copy of anything not in the cloud.
Do not factory reset the phone
Resetting it hoping to get in is the most common mistake. An iPhone comes back asking for the Apple Account (Activation Lock). An Android phone comes back asking for the Google Account (Factory Reset Protection). You end up with a device you cannot use, and you may make a legal process harder.
If the phone is still unlocked, or you know the passcode, export photos, contacts and two-factor codes now. A copy you already have is faster than any legal route.
iPhone: Apple's Digital Legacy
If the person added you as a Legacy Contact, you have an access key. Use it at digital-legacy.apple.com. You do not need their passcode. In most cases you do need the access key and a death certificate.
If they did not add a Legacy Contact, Apple's process is narrower and some data may not be accessible at all. A court order is sometimes the only remaining route, and it is not fast.
Android: Google's Inactive Account Manager
Inactive Account Manager is Google's equivalent of a Legacy Contact. It only helps if the person configured it in advance.
Without it, Google has a documented request process for deceased users that requires a death certificate. Even a successful request may not unlock the phone itself — Factory Reset Protection stays until the account is recovered or the device is released.
The phone number is separate
Carriers can often transfer the phone number to a family member with an estate document. That is its own process with the carrier, and it has nothing to do with the photos on the handset.
Stop and get help when
- You are not a Legacy Contact and have no documented authority over the estate.
- Anyone offers to unlock the phone or remove the account for a fee.
Official route
Apple's Digital Legacy process or Apple Support; Google's deceased-user account request; the carrier for the phone number. This is slow work — the official channels are the ones that still work a year later.
Who this is for: You must be a designated Legacy Contact or trusted contact, or be able to document your legal authority over the estate.