What should I do with confidential documents before selling or repairing an iPhone?
Before selling, giving away, or repairing an iPhone, it is important to think about documents as well as contacts and photos.
Contracts, ID copies, financial files, work material, and private-vault content may still be stored on the device.
Before selling the phone, the safest general workflow is to preserve the data you actually need, move it to a new device or another controlled location, and then use Apple’s normal erase and reset process before handing the device to its new owner.
Always verify that important information has been transferred successfully before erasing the phone.
Repair is a different situation. A service provider may or may not need access to the unlocked device depending on the diagnostic task.
Before handing the phone over, ask what level of access is actually required and remove sensitive material that does not need to remain on the device.
Also check Apple Photos, Files, Mail, messaging apps, browser downloads, and Recently Deleted areas. A document may have been removed from one place while another copy remains elsewhere.
PrivateProScanner keeps its main document archive and Photo Vault separate from ordinary files, which can make this review easier.
For a sale, the objective is a complete device reset after preserving what you need. For repair, the objective is to minimize the amount of sensitive information present on the device you hand over.
App-level protection is useful, but it should not replace careful preparation when a device is leaving your possession.
Download PrivateProScanner on your iPhone or iPad — a modern scanner built with privacy in mind.
Scan documents, create PDFs, keep important files and private photos locally, and use additional protection layers including AES-256, Face ID / Touch ID, and PIN controls.
PrivateProScannerPDF Scanner · AES-256Download on the App Store →