Having trouble unlocking your iPhone via Touch ID after updating to the iOS 13 (beta) platform? If that is so, then this post might help you. Read on for more information.
Touch ID is an iOS security feature that was first introduced in iPhone 5s and later iPhone variants including the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. All iPads since the iPad Air 2 also has Touch ID feature embedded. It’s a fingerprint recognition feature that’s mainly used to unlock your device, to make purchases from iTunes, Books, and App Store and likewise to authenticate Apple Pay online or in apps. Normally, Touch ID works as intended for as long as you’ve got your fingerprint registered properly on your device. Nonetheless, there are certain factors that can cause Touch ID to fail or stop working.
Aside from dust and grime covering the Touch ID (Home) button, software glitches including update bugs can likewise bar the fingerprint sensor from recognizing your fingerprint and therefore Touch ID unlock would fail. The same thing happens if hardware damage is present. Before rushing to a service center, there are a few tweaks you can do to eliminate software-related factors from the underlying cause. Lined up below are possible solutions to the iPhone’s Touch ID that stops working after updating to iOS 13.
For owners who are looking for a solution to a different problem, drop by our troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common problems with this device. Browse through the page to find issues that are similar to yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you need further assistance, don’t hesitate to contact us by filling up our iOS issues questionnaire.
Troubleshooting iPhone iOS 13 with Touch ID not working
Before troubleshooting, make sure that your finger and the fingerprint scanning area (Home button) is clean and dry. If necessary, use a clean, lint-free cloth to wipe off any dirt or oil from the Touch ID scanning area. Also ensure that your finger covers the entire Home button and touches the surrounding metal ring. Finally, remove any screen protector or casing (if installed) to prevent it from covering the Home button or surrounding ring. If none of that works, then you can move on to ruling out software-related factors by performing the following procedures.
First solution: Reboot your iPhone (soft reset/forced restart).
This might be just a minor glitch that’s triggered by the recently installed software update on your iPhone. If this is the case, then rebooting the iPhone will likely fix it. You can carry out a soft reset or forced restart then. Both these methods can produce positive results without deleting any important data stored on the iPhone storage. If you haven’t already, then consider this as the first potential solution to try. Here’s how to soft reset an iPhone (with physical Home button):
- Press and hold down the Power/Top button for a few seconds until the Power off slider appears.
- Drag the slider to power off your device.
- After a few seconds, press and hold the Power/Top button until the Apple logo appears.
Alternatively, you can carry out a forced restart. It’s usually considered as an alternative procedure to a soft reset if the display is stuck or not responsive. This is likely what your iPhone needs if the Touch ID isn’t working because the phone got stuck after the iOS update implementation. Here’s how it’s done:
- Simultaneously press and hold the Power button and Home button until the device shuts down and reboots.
- When the Apple logo appears, release both the Power and Home buttons.
Similar to a soft reset, performing a forced restart does not result in permanent data loss as it doesn’t affect any saved information on the phone memory. Thus it’s a safe process to begin with.
ALSO READ: How to fix iPhone Cellular Data that’s not working after iOS 13 update
Second solution: Turn Touch ID & Passcode off and on again.
If restarting the phone doesn’t solve the problem, then you can try refreshing its Touch ID function. Doing so will eliminate minor flaws or inconsistencies following the recent platform transition. Just follow these steps to refresh Touch ID feature of your iPhone:
- From your Home screen, tap Settings.
- Next, tap Touch ID & Passcode.
- Then make sure that iPhone Unlock or iTunes & App Store are enabled. If not, toggle the switch to enable the feature.
Give your iPhone another restart and then try to see Touch ID unlock is already working properly again.
Third solution: Remove and re-add your fingerprint.
The recent update might have ruined your fingerprint information. In that case, removing the corrupted fingerprint would be necessary. Doing so will let you register your fingerprint again as new. Here’s how you do it:
- Tap Settings from your Home screen, to get started.
- Next, tap Touch ID & Passcode.
- Enter your device passcode, if prompted to continue.
- Scroll down to find fingerprints.
- Tap on the fingerprint that you want to remove.
- Then tap Delete.
- Add or register new fingerprint.
Make sure that your finger surface gets scanned completely. Try registering different angles of your fingerprint to ensure every detail of your fingerprint will be recognized afterwards.
Fourth solution: Reset all settings on your iPhone iOS 13.
Another possibility is that the recent iOS update might have implemented automatic settings overrides and that eventually resulted in some conflicts to the Touch ID system. To rule this out, resetting all settings on your iPhone can help. Through this reset, all settings including customizations and automatic overrides from the recent updates will be deleted and the original values and options are restored. Any associated errors to the previous invalid settings configurations will therefore be eliminated. Here’s how it’s done:
- Tap Settings from your Home screen.
- Tap General.
- Scroll down and tap on Reset.
- Choose Reset all settings from the given options.
- Enter your passcode when asked to proceed.
- Finally, tap the option to confirm all settings reset.
Allow your device to finish resetting all settings and then restarts on its own when done. After it reboots, enable Touch ID and Passcode on your iPhone settings. Then try and see if Touch ID unlock is already working as intended.
ALSO READ: How to fix iPhone notifications that are not working after iOS 13 update
Fifth solution: Erase your iPhone and restore iOS in iTunes.
Performing a master reset or factory reset can be deemed among the last options if the previous methods failed to resolve the problem. Complex system errors might be present on your device and halted the Touch ID system from functioning. If you wish to proceed, be sure to back up all your important data to iCloud or iTunes because they will also be deleted in the process. After securing your iPhone backup, follow these steps to factory reset your iPhone through settings or through iTunes on a computer.
To factory reset via Settings menu, simply refer to these steps:
- From the Home screen, tap on Settings.
- Tap General.
- Tap Reset.
- Select the option to Erase all content and settings.
- Enter your passcode to proceed.
- Tap the option to confirm full system reset or factory reset.
Your device will then instigate the system reset and then restarts when finished. As soon as it boots up, use the start-up wizard to proceed to the initial setup process and get your iPhone ready for use again.
Alternatively, you can use iTunes to manually erase and restore your iPhone on a computer. To continue with this method, you will need to secure a Windows or Mac computer that has the latest version of iTunes software and with a stable Internet access. Once you have everything ready, you can follow these steps to start erasing and restoring your iPhone in iTunes:
- On your computer, launch or open iTunes. Be sure to use the latest version of iTunes app on your device to avoid facing system conflicts.
- Then connect your iOS device to the computer using the original USB cable while pressing and holding down the Home button.
- Release the Home button when the Connect to iTunes screen appears.
- At this point, iTunes will prompt you with a message saying that it has detected your iOS device in recovery mode and that you can restore your device. If you see this message, just click the Restore [Device name] button to instigate recovery mode restore through iTunes.
Major system issues including complex post-iOS update bugs are usually remedied by restoring the iPhone in iTunes. If the standard iOS restore doesn’t solve the problem, then you may opt to proceed to a deepest type of iOS restore called the Device Firmware Upgrade or DFU mode restore. It puts your device in a state that’s still able to communicate with iTunes even when the boot loader or operating system is no longer responding or has gone corrupted from the recent iOS 13 update. This restore method also requires the use of iTunes on a computer.
Still couldn’t get Touch ID to work on your iPhone after iOS 13 update?
Perhaps you’re dealing with a hardware issue. While the symptoms started after updating your iPhone software, it doesn’t always denote that the update is to blame. It’s possible that the damage has already existed but the symptom has just coincidentally manifested after the update. And the only way to figure this out is to seek a technician’s aid. You can take your iPhone to the nearest Apple service center for a thorough assessment on the hardware components, particularly the Touch ID sensor or Home button.
For further recommendations, you can relay the issue to your device carrier or Apple Support. If nothing’s wrong the hardware, then it must be another iOS 13 bug that requires a dedicated fix patch.
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