An Apple ID is in essence your passport to all things Apple. It authenticates iCloud, iTunes, iTunes Home Sharing, Apple Music, iMessage, FaceTime, synchronizes your contacts across your devices, verifies your identify, and is even used to make reservations for a service appointment. A lot right? In fact it’s used for so many things that it’s important that you know it as well as keep your Apple ID up to date.
The two parts to an Apple ID:
Part one is your email address. If your email address ever changes, you can update the records. A common mistake is to make a brand new one, and unfortunately for those who do this the hurdles it creates are hard to overcome.
Part two is the password that authenticates it (or grants you access to the Apple ecosystem.)
Most people create their first Apple ID when they set up their first device (computer, iPhone, iPad etc). You’ll fill in some further information, including three security questions, name, address, date of birth and so forth.
This may sound like a lot of personal information to hand over — and yes it is — but it is all relevant and becomes useful down the road.
Recovering lost passwords:
For security reasons, your password isn’t stored anywhere. In fact there’s no way to retrieve it. If you have forgotten the password for your Apple ID (and we all do from time to time) it can be reset at the “I forgot” section of the Apple ID web site.
If you have forgotten both parts (the email address as well as the password) this presents a greater challenge and you might get locked out of the device entirely.
In conclusion, the important thing is to keep track of your password. If you forget it, it’s time to get a new one. Without knowing your password it’s much like losing the keys to the car. If you’re stuck and don’t know the next steps let’s arrange a tech session in one of our stores. Contact me with your questions!