iTunes is a great tool for backing up your iOS devices. iTunes would backup almost all kinds of data on your iPhone, including private information like text messages and photos, etc. So it's important to make sure that your iTunes backup is stored safely and nobody else can get their hands on it. Obviously Apple had thought about this and that's why they added the Encrypt backup feature in iTunes for users who need to encrypt their backups.

The encrypt backup feature is practical because it prevents others from using your backup and your personal information from exposing. But there must be something you don't know about this feature, like you can't access the backup without the iTunes backup password. In this post you could find all the things you need to know about this Encrypt backup feature in iTunes.

About encrypted backups in iTunes and iTunes backup password

Here are something about the encrypted backups in iTunes and iTunes backup password that you might not know about.

  • 1. Encrypted iTunes backup includes 4 more types of data than the unencrypted iTunes backup. And the 4 types of data are: Your saved passwords, Website history, Wi-Fi settings and Health data.
  • 2. Once you turn on the password-protected Encrypt backup option, iTunes would encrypt all backups of that device from then on.
  • 3. If you lose or forget iTunes backup password, there's no way to recover your information or turn off Encrypt Backup.

How to encrypt iTunes backup

Here's how to encrypt iTunes backup. Before you start, you should remember to write down the iTunes backup password in case you forget.

  • Step 1. The latest iTunes is always preferred so make sure that you are using the latest version of iTunes. Open iTunes first.
  • Step 2. Connect your iOS device to PC with a USB cable. On iTunes, find the icon of your device on the upper left corner and click on it to enter Summary.
  • Step 3. On the Summary page, you can see Encrypt [device] backup in the Backups section, select it to enable iTunes backup password.
  • Step 4. A Set Password window would appear. Fill in the password twice and click Set Password. Remember to use a password that's easy to remember or write it down in case you forget.
  • Step 5. iTunes would start to back up your iOS device and at the same time overwrites and encrypts your old backups.

How to check if you've successfully encrypted iTunes backup?

  • 1. On Mac OS: On the desktop, navigate to iTunes>Preferences. On Windows: On the menu bar on iTunes, navigate to Edit>Preferences.
  • 2. Click on the Devices tab.
  • 3. All the backups on iTunes could be found here. And those with the lock icon on them are the ones encrypted.

Keep in mind that once you forgot iTunes backup password, there's no way you could do iTunes backup password recovery which means you won't be able to access your backup or cancel Encrypt Backup feature. So you should probably write down your iTunes backup password and keep it in a safe place.