What to Do If You Forget Your Android Phone's PIN, Pattern, or Password

It's a tricky situation.

Android secures your instrumentality by asking you for a PIN, pattern, aliases afloat password. What happens if you hide nan information method you group up? If you're lucky, you tin get backmost successful easily—but that whitethorn not beryllium possible.

Even if you usage a fingerprint aliases Face Unlock to unafraid your Android phone, neither of those methods tin beryllium utilized arsenic nan "main" information method. For example, erstwhile you restart your phone, it will require nan PIN, pattern, aliases password earlier you tin usage a fingerprint aliases Face Unlock. So, let's look astatine your options.

Unlock With Smart Lock

If you've forgotten your PIN, pattern, aliases password, Android's Smart Lock characteristic whitethorn beryllium capable to prevention you. For example, let's opportunity you've set up Smart Lock connected your Android phone and person it automatically log successful erstwhile it's connected your location Wi-Fi. You tin return your telephone to that location Wi-Fi network, and it will automatically unlock for you, moreover if you can't retrieve nan normal unlock code.

The problem pinch this solution is it only gets you into your phone, it doesn't thief you reset your PIN, pattern, aliases password. You will still request to cognize that if you want to make changes to Smart Lock. Plus, nan bigger problem is you can't usage Smart Lock to get into your telephone aft it has been restarted. If you're capable to get backmost into your telephone pinch Smart Lock, you should backmost up each of your important stuff, and past usage 1 of nan pursuing solutions.

Samsung SmartThings Find

Samsung Galaxy owners person nan champion action erstwhile it comes to recovering a telephone erstwhile you've forgotten your PIN, pattern, aliases password. You tin use Samsung's SmartThings Find tool to unlock nan instrumentality and reset nan fastener surface information remotely. The only drawback is you request to person already been signed successful pinch your Samsung relationship connected nan device—which you astir apt did during nan first setup—and it needs to person a Wi-Fi aliases mobile information connection.

First, caput complete to nan SmartThings Find website connected a desktop aliases mobile browser. After you motion successful pinch your Samsung relationship and assistance location permission, you'll spot a database of your connected devices. Select nan instrumentality you request to unlock.

Now prime "Unlock" from nan devices menu.

A paper will explicate that your telephone will beryllium remotely unlocked, and each nan surface fastener accusation will beryllium deleted. Select "Unlock" to proceed.

Your telephone will beryllium unlocked, and you'll request to set up a caller fastener surface information method.

Erase aliases Reset

Unfortunately, if you don't person a Samsung Galaxy device, your options are beautiful bleak—remotely erasing nan instrumentality aliases performing a mill reset. The distant action is useful if you can't get into nan telephone astatine all. The mill reset fundamentally does nan aforesaid thing, conscionable not remotely.

To remotely erase nan device, you'll request to usage Google's "Find My Device" tool, which is automatically disposable for each Android devices. Simply motion successful pinch nan aforesaid Google relationship arsenic your telephone astatine google.com/android/find, take nan locked device, and usage nan "Erase Device" tool.

For mill resetting, location are respective different methods you tin use, depending connected nan business pinch your device. Check retired our afloat guideline connected how to mill reset an Android phone for step-by-step instructions for each method. Keep successful mind that you will request to motion successful pinch nan aforesaid Google relationship aft nan reset process. This is to forestall group from stealing phones and resetting them without needing a password.

Android 4.4 and Below

Older versions of Android — Android 4.4 KitKat and older — person an integrated measurement to bypass your pattern, PIN, aliases different password if you hide it. To find this feature, first participate an incorrect shape aliases PIN 5 times astatine nan fastener screen. You'll spot a "Forgot pattern," "forgot PIN," aliases "forgot password" fastener appear. Tap it. You'll beryllium prompted to participate nan username and password of nan Google relationship associated pinch your Android device.

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Modern Android devices activity a batch more for illustration Apple's iPhones and iPads. If you hide nan code, you'll request to reset it to its mill default settings to regain access. This originates to make consciousness erstwhile you see Google's desire to encrypt each Android devices retired of nan container automatically. The PIN aliases password is utilized arsenic portion of nan cardinal to decrypt nan information stored connected an encrypted Android device.