120 MACWORLD SEPTEMBER 2020
HELPDESK MAC 911Apple account for so long, I can pick
among mac.com, me.com, and icloud.com
with the same account prefix; for later
Apple service joiners, you may have only
two choices or no choices at all.
Second, since two-factor authentication
is almost certainly enabled for any Apple
ID currently in use because of how Apple
has encouraged or required its use,
consider also adding additional trusted
phone numbers to the Apple ID account.
This can help prevent loss of access in
case something goes wrong with the
primary email address before or after
changing it.
A trusted phone number can receive
either a text message via SMS or a call
with an automated voice that speaks a
code. You can add a trusted phone in
three ways:
> At appleid.apple.
com, click the Edit button
to the right of the Security
section, and then click
Add a Trusted Phone
Number. Follow the steps
for verification.
> In iOS and iPadOS,
go to Settings → account
name → Password &
Security, tap Edit next to
the Trusted Phone
Numbers label, tap Add a
Trusted Phone Number,
and follow the steps.
> In macOS Mojave and earlier, open
the iCloud preference pane, click Account
Details, click Security, and click the + (plus)
sign below the list of Trusted Phone
Numbers. Follow the steps to verify a
number.
> In macOS Catalina, open the Apple
ID preference pane, click Password &
Security, click Edit to the right of Trusted
Phone Numbers, click the + (plus) sign at
the bottom, and follow the steps to add
and verify a number.
Now, you have a belt and suspenders
in case when the original email account
something goes wrong and you need
additional connections to the Apple ID if
you have to contact Apple for help in
recovering access. ■Trusted phone numbers allow backup access to 2FA-protected
Apple ID accounts.