Illegally installed MDM and invalid Root Certificate

My iPhone and all iOS devices are controlled by an illegally installed MDM. In addition or related, the Root Certificate is invalid for iOS 18.


Apple has been unwilling to help for 7 months now, leaving it to me to figure out on my own.


Can anyone please give me any advice about resources to make this stop?

Posted on Jul 20, 2025 8:58 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jul 31, 2025 9:28 AM

There is no such thing as an unauthorized MDM. To install MDM, you either

  1. Must purchase the device from Apple or an authorized reseller and have it added to Apple Business/School Manager and have an MDM connected for automated device enrollment
  2. Someone must have physical access to your device and must have your passcode/password.
  3. Someone must have physical access to your device, your iCloud password (assuming you've set that up), and be in a trusted location (or wait for an hour, again, assuming you set iCloud up), then they have to wipe your device and add it to Apple Business/School Manager manually.

Option 1 cannot be removed by you because you don't own the device.

Option 2 can be removed in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management.

Option 3 can also be removed in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management if it has been less than 30 days since the device was enrolled. You would likely notice if this one was the case as again, at a minimum, it requires the device to be wiped.


These are the only options.

4 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jul 31, 2025 9:28 AM in response to Askerbashk

There is no such thing as an unauthorized MDM. To install MDM, you either

  1. Must purchase the device from Apple or an authorized reseller and have it added to Apple Business/School Manager and have an MDM connected for automated device enrollment
  2. Someone must have physical access to your device and must have your passcode/password.
  3. Someone must have physical access to your device, your iCloud password (assuming you've set that up), and be in a trusted location (or wait for an hour, again, assuming you set iCloud up), then they have to wipe your device and add it to Apple Business/School Manager manually.

Option 1 cannot be removed by you because you don't own the device.

Option 2 can be removed in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management.

Option 3 can also be removed in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management if it has been less than 30 days since the device was enrolled. You would likely notice if this one was the case as again, at a minimum, it requires the device to be wiped.


These are the only options.

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Illegally installed MDM and invalid Root Certificate

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