iPhone Connection to RAX70 - Connecting twice and more...

Question

I have a&nbsp;Nighthawk 8-Stream Wifi 6 Router (XA700) - AX6600 (Model #RAX70), and I have multiple devices attached to my network (e.g.: TV's, Amazon fire sticks, Samsung phones, Chromebooks, etc.) as well as my son's iPhone.&nbsp;&nbsp;When we connected his new iPhone 15 to the network, it attached itself twice. Two different IP addresses and two different MAC addresses. The same thing happened for his iPhone 13. After configuring his phone, I looked up his IP and then deleted the attached device with the other IP address. We turned off private Wi-Fi, as this apparently creates randomized MAC addresses so the iPhone is not tracked when using other people's wifi. A security measure I guess. But we turned it off because I have read that this can show two devices on networks, but those few articles are not exactly aligned to what I'm experiencing.&nbsp;&nbsp;To provide a little more detail, I named the devices "Child's Name - iPhone 15a" and "Child's Name - iPhone 15b". And like I said, after he was connected, I looked at which device had the "green" icon next to it in the app, then deleted the other device "Child's Name - iPhone 15a".&nbsp;After about an hour of being on the network and seeing only one phone attached, two more phones attached to my network, but were blocked since I have Access Control set to not allow new devices to connect. My son told me he was no longer able to access the internet. They were named "CHILDIPHONE" and "IPHONE".&nbsp;Because the "CHILDIPHONE" matched the "Child's Name - iPhone 15a" 's IP address and MAC address from when he first attached his new phone, I allowed this one to access the network, and then was able to delete "IPHONE".&nbsp;But because we have had issues with his last iPhone being hacked - which I believe we rectified by factory reseting his old phone - I am still left wondering if this is how iPhones work (like I said, I have read a few articles how iPhone randomizes and hides the real IP and MAC and appears as two phones), or if somehow when he transferred his stuff from his old phone to his new phone, that I am still being hacked.&nbsp;Has anyone else had any experience even remotely similar.

FURRYe38 · Answer

Be sure to disable any MAC Address randomizers on phones and pads while at home:
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi-App/NETGEAR-Mobile-Applications-and-Apple-Devices-FAQ/td-p/2220016/jump-to/first-unread-message

Grafixmac · Answer

We have set the private wifi to OFF on his phone. Then I deleted the "second" attachment. However, it still comes back.

It shows the wifi connected status icon as "gray". If I delete it, it comes back. And then that one becomes the "new" phone that is the "real" phone (e.g.: the one I can turn wifi on and off for when he is using his phone).

FURRYe38 · Answer

Review the MAC address seen the routers web page and compare that to what is seen on the phone under Private WiFi Address while that feature is disabled or set to Fixed. Those should be the same between the router and phone.

Grafixmac · Answer

So what I see in the Netgear app for the one that is "green" matches his phone.The one that is "gray" does not appear anywhere on his phone.&nbsp;In my experience, this is what I believe is happening (but I do not want to test this anymore as I've been dealing with trying to fix this problem for months):If I delete the one that is not in use (attached to my network, but not active on the wifi), what happens is that a new attachment appears, and this one becomes the main "active" one, and the one that was the active one is no longer active, yet still two appear, and now each have a new MAC address.&nbsp;But this should not be happening at all with his private wifi set to OFF.

Grafixmac · Answer

It could be several things, and while I do not think it is the router, the router does show two entries, and keeps doing so, so two things (apparently) are connecting (connected) to my network.&nbsp;1) It could be due to the hack of his phone2) It could be due to suspicious activity attached to his phone # (his Mint Mobile account got suspended today for suspicious activity)3) It could be the way the phone works4) It could be due to his Apple Watch&nbsp;The long of the story is that his original Android phone number given to him by MM was also being used by another person. It was really strange, as his messages and the other guy's were getting crossed. But he bought a used iPhone and got a new phone #. We then installed a child monitoring program on his phone (like I had on my other kids' phones), and then the VPN started to go wonky (his iPhone needed the VPN based on the child security monitoring program), and apps started appearing in my alerts that were not on his phone. We removed this child monitoring program and I started to see all these other messages in that child monitoring app that were definitely not his, and we found hidden apps (tik tok, etc.) that he didn't install. So we factory reset that phone and then reattached it to the network. Two attached devices. So we bought a BRAND NEW iphone. He transferred his icloud to his new phone and here we are again. Two devices.&nbsp;So while I cannot rule out this is how the phone works, that is the long story of it, and I don't know where else to post to find answers. It cannot be due to the original duplicate phone # since he now has a new number. It can't be due to the hack, since we factory reset his phone, unless somehow the hackers were able to actually hack thru the iOS and install malware on the firmware... that seems like NSA-level hacking.&nbsp;And I think the MM suspension of his account is due to us transferring his phone number from his previous iPhone which had a physical SIM to his new phone with an eSIM and using Mint Mobiles app to do it.&nbsp;But with so many variables, and not being an expert in any of this stuff, I am well beyond my comfort zone, and the issue I'm most worried about is that someone else is attached to my network and seeing everything we do. The ONLY solace I have is that with this router, I have the 2.4 GHz network and two 5G networks, so all of the kids' phones (his included) are on one of the two 5G networks, and the GUEST one to boot. But if there was someone spying on them, they could possibly see anything my other kids were doing. Creepy, but like I said, I am worried and stumped.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

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iPhone Connection to RAX70 - Connecting twice and more...

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