A four-digit number may seem the easiest thing to remember; yet it can slip from your memory in a jiffy. Especially when you are stressed. Result: you are locked out of your phone. 

Many keep their phones unlocked precisely for this reason. However, it is important to lock your phone so that no unauthorised person can get into your device and snoop around. 

The first thing to realise is that it is not easy to bypass your dynamic lock. Neither is a quick fix available. There may be countless solutions and apps out there on the Net claiming to do so, but trust me, none of them will work. So if it is something that you need urgently on your phone, such as an email, better get to your computer and access it. If you are on Android and use Google’s Keep app for all your memos, you can access this on your computer by going to https://keep.google.com. For iPhone users there is always Apple’s iCloud.

If you have all your data backed up to the cloud, it may not be a disaster if you are shut out from your own phone and its wealth of personal information. When you set about the process of getting back into your phone, remember it will wipe off all your data. In case you have been putting off this very vital issue of syncing your data, do it right now. And remember, once you are locked out even military grade forensics may not help you to get inside your device again, especially if you are using an iPhone.

Things may not be so bad if you have a Samsung phone. If you have registered it with their https://findmymobile. samsung. com service you can unlock the phone remotely. This will help you bypass the lock without resetting your phone. If you use an Android version 4.4 or lower on your phone, you will be able to bypass a pattern screen lock by going to https://www.google.co.in/android/devicemanager and pressing unlock a number of times.

In all other situations, you will have to reset your device. If you have stock Android or any of its variants, first turn off your phone. Press and hold the volume down and power buttons simultaneously, and your phone will boot into a diagnostics mode. Tap the volume down key to highlight Recovery and then the power button to select it. When you see the Android logo, press and hold the power button and tap the volume up key. Use the volume down button to select the wipe data/factory reset option. Press the power button to confirm your choice. Once again tap the volume down button to choose yes to confirm that all user data will be wiped, and then press power again. Once the phone has been wiped, press the power button to reboot the phone.

If you are using an iPhone, connect it to a laptop running the latest version of iTunes. Make sure the phone is off when you are doing this and iTunes should be closed. While your device is connected, force restart your phone by pressing and holding the Sleep/Wake and Home buttons at the same time (On an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus press and hold the Sleep/Wake and Volume Down buttons). Do not release the buttons when you see the Apple logo. Keep holding both buttons until you see the recovery mode screen. Your computer will alert you to restore the phone and you can then set it up from scratch.

Don’t let all this trouble put you off from locking your screen with a PIN, pattern or a fingerprint scan. Remember, this is for protecting your own privacy in case you lose your phone. The key to avoid a catastrophe and lose all your data is to keep it backed up with Google or Apple’s iCloud. Do not neglect this.

 

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