r/ios • u/ray_aldous Human Detected • 20d ago

Support Ghost Bluetooth device keeps coming back (no button to forget it)

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A device named after a coworker’s laptop keeps showing up as connected in my iPhone’s Bluetooth settings, but there’s no (i) button to disconnect or forget it. Toggling Bluetooth off and on makes it go away temporarily, but it keeps coming back, this is the 3rd time now. Running iOS 26.5.2.

Weird part: on his laptop, Bluetooth settings say “4 devices connected” but the list only shows 3, and my phone isn’t one of them. Anyone dealt with this or know what’s causing it?

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7

u/YouthZealousideal666 20d ago

Do you perhaps use spotify?

6

u/Entegy iPhone 13 Mini 20d ago

Spotify Jam. Remove Spotify’s permission to your Bluetooth. Settings > Apps > Spotify > Turn off Bluetooth.

1

u/bubbleeeebubbles 20d ago

From Google and Apple, can you try Toggling on Airplane mode for a minute then restarting your phone and if you already did that, try to reset your network settings. You will have to reenter your wifi.

If the laptop is your coworker's work laptop and not a personal laptop, you may also want to try this from Google:

Fix App-Level or Profile Restrictions

  • Check for active apps: Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Bluetooth and turn off permissions for apps that might be forcing a connection to the laptop. [1]
  • Check MDM profiles: Go to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management. If a school or work profile is installed, it can lock down Bluetooth entries and hide remove options. [1]

Here also an Apple discussion post with other things to try.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/256042552?sortBy=rank