An activation lock is a security feature designed to prevent unauthorized access to a device such as a smartphone, tablet, or computer. It is commonly found on Apple devices and is also known as the "Find My" activation lock.
When the activation lock is enabled, the device is tied to the owner's Apple ID, and in order to use the device, the user must enter the correct Apple ID and password. This prevents thieves or unauthorized users from resetting or erasing the device and using it without permission.
The activation lock is activated when the "Find My" feature is turned on. This feature allows the owner of the device to locate and remotely lock or erase the device if it is lost or stolen. If the owner forgets their Apple ID or password, they can use Apple's account recovery process to regain access to their device.
Overall, the activation lock is an important security feature that helps to protect personal data and prevent theft of electronic devices.
How to bypass an activation lock?
Requirements
Supervised mobile devices with iOS 7.1 or later
Supervised computers with macOS 10.15 or later with Apple silicon or the Apple T2 Security Chip
Find My enabled on the device after enrollment
Note: Find My must be enabled after the device enrolls with Swif. If Find my is enabled before enrollment, the Activation Lock bypass code will not be correctly collected by Swif.
Troubleshooting: If Find My was enabled prior to enrollment, disable Find My on the device, and then re-enable Find My. The Activation lock bypass code in Swif will be updated in the device record the next time the device syncs with the Swif server
If your MacOS device is enrolled with Swif, you can get the code to bypass Activation Lock. Please note that requesting that bypass code from a device requires that it be supervised. Supervision (as a title) for computers was introduced in macOS 10.15, but in that release only applied to computers that were enrolled via Automated Device Enrollment. In macOS 11+ that all expanded, where any user-approved MDM enrollment was considered supervised, so you will be able to get the bypass code without a DEP (ADE) enrollment.
With Swif self-installed enrollment, you can get the bypass code by going to Device Overview -> Security -> Activation lock bypass code.
On a Mac, reset the device to Recovery mode and you can enter the bypass code by starting in recoveryOS, clicking Recovery Assistant in the menu bar, and choosing the “Activate with MDM key” option.
If you can not bypass it, you can still unlock the activation lock by asking Apple support.