Stolen iPhone & Two-Factor Authentication

[Mac 128]

My friend recently had a problem while traveling outside the US. His iPhone was stolen, and he had no other Apple devices with him. He bought a new iPhone in another country to replace it, but because he didn’t have another trusted Apple device for two-factor authentication he couldn’t restore his iPhone from iCloud. He called Apple and they said there was nothing they could do after verifying his identification.

My question is that how do I prevent that situation for myself? I usually travel with an iPad and an iPhone, but what if both are lost or stolen? I thought the whole point of my security questions with Apple was to be able to recover access to my account without needing anything else, even if I have two-factor authentication setup.

Has anyone else ever found themselves in this situation?

 

[jetsam]

Under the current two factor authentication (not the old two step), you don't need a trusted Apple device. A trusted phone number can be used.

These phone numbers have to be verified while you still have your iPhone, of course, so it's best to add them as soon as two factor authentication is set up.

See:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/ht204915
and scroll down to "Trusted Phone Numbers"