If someone is accessing your iPhone without physical access

Go through these points if you have reason to believe your iPhone or iPad has been hacked or compromised, or that someone else is using it.

Go through these points if you have reason to believe your iPhone or iPad has been hacked or compromised, or that someone else is using it. Even though there have been reports of malicious apps making their way to the App Store and users being tricked into installing harmful profiles, all things considered, iOS is still one of the most secure software platforms that’s resilient to traditional viruses and malware.

That said, if you go through your Screen Time usage and notice abnormal activity, or if you see changes to one or more apps, the Home Screen, etc., that you don’t recall making, here’s what you should be aware of. A few years back, I read a story on social media about someone who logged into their partner’s WhatsApp account in a web browser and monitored the chats. Many apps across categories allow you to use them on multiple devices and locations.

For example, you can use the same WhatsApp account on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows PC, and even an Android phone. So, if you see new texts or find that a chat has been deleted, it could be that someone else with access to your devices, like a family member, did it. In most apps and services, you can go to the account page and see all the locations where you are logged in. If you don’t recognize a device, log out remotely.

Let’s say you see a new app on your iPhone Home Screen that you are sure you never downloaded. Instead of thinking your device is compromised, chances are your child downloaded it on the family iPad that uses your Apple Account, and you have “Automatic App Downloads” enabled in Settings, which resulted in the new app also getting installed on your iPhone. If you notice anything unusual, first ask a family member before becoming overly concerned.

Just for your refresher, if you notice something different in a note, document, playlist, iCloud Drive folder, Apple Passwords app, or such, take a minute to check if that item is shared with family, friends, or office colleagues. If so, they could be the ones who made the change; don’t worry about your iPhone or app being compromised. Did you recently sell, gift, or lose an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, especially one that was not password-protected?

If that’s the case, you could be in serious trouble, as the thief may be the one making changes to your data saved in your cloud accounts, which also reflect on your current device. We have an important guide that tells you about 15 things to do before selling or giving away your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Since the device is not with you, use iCloud to erase it remotely. Then, change your Apple Account password.

FaceTime has a useful option that lets one of the participants take remote control over the other person’s device and make changes to it. If your elderly parents, grandparent, or kids complain of issues with their device, ask them if someone (likely a scammer) tricked them into sharing their device screen and gaining remote control of their iPhone. On computers, scammers mainly use software like AnyDesk to trick victims into granting long-distance access to their devices.

Imagine a situation: your iPhone is on your bedside table, and a family member is using your Mac nearby. In this case, they can use iPhone Mirroring on your computer to do pretty much anything on your iPhone without touching it. Your iPhone won’t even alert you or light up, leaving you in the dark. Lastly, as secure and restrictive as iOS is, we can’t fully rule out someone gaining access to your device via compromised profiles or targeted malware.

If you’re concerned about these, there are a few steps you can take, and we have mentioned them under the next heading. What changes did you notice on your iPhone or iPad that made you think your device is hacked or someone else is using it?

Summary

This report covers the latest developments in iphone. The information presented highlights key changes and updates that are relevant to those following this topic.

---