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How to Completely Delete Your iPhone's Contents With iOS 8 Before Trading in for an iPhone 6

Have an older iPhone model and want to trade-up to the iPhone 6? Well you'll probably want to get all your information off the old phone first.

How to Completely Delete Your iPhone's Contents With iOS 8 Before Trading in for an iPhone 6
By Rob Rich
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News

The iPhone 6 is out tomorrow, and plenty of people are excited about it. So much so that they're planning to - or already have - traded in their old iPhone to go towards it. The thing about trading in hardware is it's very important to make sure your personal information isn't still on there once it leaves your hands. You generally have nothing to worry about when going through reputable businesses, but these days it never hurts to make sure.

Chances are you'll have to wait a bit if you didn't already preorder your iPhone 6, and in the meantime you'll probably be updating to iOS 8. If so, you'll want to know how to clear all the data from your phone with the new iOS before you hand it off for a downpayment. As with all things regarding sensitive data, you'll want to start in your phone's Settings menu (I apologize for the mess on my home screen, I wasn't expecting company).

  • From inside Settings, scroll down to the General menu option (it's just below Do Not Disturb).

  • From inside the General menu, scroll down to the Reset option.

  • You'll see a list of the various things you can reset, including all of your settings, content, and other preferences.

  • Specifically you're looking to "Erase All Content and Settings," but it wouldn't hurt to reset everything else while you're in there.

  • When you make your selection you'll be prompted to enter the code you use to unlock your phone. Enter it, and your data will be wiped clean.

    And that should do it! Your iPhone is now clear of any sensitive/incriminating information and you may trade it in without fear of a stranger stumbling upon that picture you took at that party that time.