Mysteriously Locked Phone

[hugoso]

I am trying to unlock my Sprint Galaxy S3 running the latest update (not sure if it is 4.3 or 4.4). The lock screen is asking for a password. The mysterious part is, I never setup my phone with an unlock password. I have always used the simple finger swipe across the screen to unlock it.

I know I can unlock it via a factory reset (hard reset), but I want to exhaust all other possibilities as I don't want to lose all my data (contacts, photos, etc.) which isn't backed up. If I can figure out how it got locked, then maybe I can figure out how to unlock it (perhaps what the password is).

I have scoured the internet looking for a solution. I have tried my Google account password and over 200 other possible password combinations that I would have used had I actually set an unlock password. I have also spoken with tech support at Sprint and Samsung. No one can figure out how the phone got locked or how to unlock it (other than a factory reset). Also, no one else has had access to my phone, so it wasn't locked by someone else.

As crazy as it sounds, literally, one day it worked normally and the next day I woke up and it was locked and requiring a password.

Can anyone figure out how it got locked without me setting up a password? And, more importantly, how to unlock it? Many Thanks.

 

[N4Newbie]

Go here https://www.google.com/android/devicemanager and login using your gmail account info.

If the device manager locates your S3, click the "Lock" button and you will be prompted to enter a new PIN code. If it does so successfully, you should be able to unlock your S3 using this new code.

 

[cpaight]

^ This

 

[ajl]

^^ Did the exact same thing with my S4. Except, I simply forgot my pass code.

 

[hugoso]

Had trouble posting. New to all this. See post below.

 

[hugoso]

Go here google.com/android/devicemanager and login using your gmail account info.

If the device manager locates your S3, click the "Lock" button and you will be prompted to enter a new PIN code. If it does so successfully, you should be able to unlock your S3 using this new code.

Shortly after posting, I was reading elsewhere on this site and came across a link to a Sept. 2013 CNET article on using device manager to lock one's phone remotely. I wondered if it would work in my situation, but was hesitant to try it for fear of making things worse. Based on your reply and "cpaight" and "Andrew Lima" confirming it, I will give it a try. Many Thanks.

PS: Sorry it took so long to reply. Had trouble posting because I wasn't allowed to post link.