Factory resetting your iPhone 12 will wipe the data stored on the device and it will revert the device to its original settings. This is useful if you’re planning to trade-in your phone, sell or donate it it to a third-party, or if you’re having issues and think starting over might help.
Before you factory reset your iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, or iPhone 12 Pro Max, there are some steps you’ll want to take in order to prepare yourself and your device for the upcoming process.
Related:These Are The 6 Common Problem iPhone 12 Used To Have
The first thing you’ll want to do is update your Mac (or PC) with the latest version of macOS. This is an optional step, but it could help.
If you’re currently running macOS Mojave or older, and you don’t want to upgrade, you’ll want to download the latest version of iTunes.
Once you’ve done that, you’ll want to backup the information stored on your iPhone. If you don’t want to keep the data saved on your phone, you can skip this step.
And finally, you’ll want to turn off Find My iPhone. Here’s how to do that:
- Head into the Settings app.
- Tap your name/account at the top.
- Tap Find My.
- Tap Find My iPhone.
- Toggle Find My iPhone to off.
Now you’re ready to factory reset your iPhone 12.
How to Factory Reset iPhone 12
If you are using a Mac that’s running macOS Catalina or macOS Big Sur, you’ll now want to open up Finder. If you’re running older software, open up iTunes. From there, follow these steps.
- Connect your iPhone to your computer.
- If you receive a message asking for your device passcode or to Trust This Computer, follow the steps on your screen. You’ll need to complete this before you can initiate the reset process.
- Select your iPhone from the sidebar in Finder or iTunes.
- Click Restore iPhone.
- Click Restore again to confirm that you want to proceed. From here, your computer will erase the data on your iPhone and install the latest version of iOS.
- Wait for your iPhone to restart.
Once your iPhone restarts, it will have reverted back to its factory settings.
If security is important to you, think about installing iOS 14.8 right away.
iOS 14.8 doesn’t have a lot on board, but it does bring two new security patches with it. You can learn more about them right here.
If you want to better protect your iPhone and its data, you’ll want to install the iOS 14.8 update in the near future.
If you skipped iOS 14.4.2, you get its security patch with iOS 14.8. You can learn more about that patch over on Apple’s website as well.
If you missed iOS 14.4.1, you get its patch with your upgrade to iOS 14.8. You can read about that patch right here.
If you skipped iOS 14.4, you get the update’s patches with your upgrade. You can learn more about iOS 14.4’s security patches right here.
If you skipped iOS 14.3 you’ll get its nine security updates with your upgrade. You can read more about them on its security site.
iOS 14.3 also included a new privacy information section on App Store pages that includes a developer-reported summary of the app’s privacy practices.
If you skipped iOS 14.2, your iOS 14.8 update includes 24 additional security patches. You can learn more about the patches on Apple’s security website.
If you’re still running iOS 13, iOS 14.8 includes iOS 14.0’s security updates.
iOS 14.0 brought 11 new security patches to the iPhone. If you’re interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple’s website.
In addition to those patches, iOS 14 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Home/HomeKit and Safari.
For instance in Safari, you can now tap the Privacy Report button to better understand how websites handle your privacy.
Related:iPhone 13 Pro reveals 55% better GPU performance than iPhone 12 Pro
With iOS 14 on board you can now get information on the App Store that will help you understand the privacy practices of apps before you download them.
There is also a new recording indicator that will appear at the top of your screen whenever an app is using your microphone or camera. You can see if an app has used them recently in Control Center.
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