Apple Music or Spotify start playing automatically on iPhone whenever wired/wireless headphones are connected, no fix in sight

Multiple Apple iPhone users with various models like the iPhone 8, iPhone X, and even the latest iPhone 12 series are reporting an issue that causes various music apps like Apple Music or Spotify to start playing automatically whenever wired/wireless headphones are connected.

The issue occurs even when all music apps are closed. Sometimes, plugging in headphones also causes calls to hang up followed by the music player blasting music, regardless of whether the call is started with the headphones in or out.

I started having this problem today. While listening on my wired earbuds, connected via the dongle, my phone would randomly start playing a podcast using my podcast app (Overcast), and sometimes just forward itself to the next podcast in my feed
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When I plug my headphones in it hangs up on my calls and pauses/ plays music by itself, even if I do not have a music app open and regardless of whether I start the call with the headphones in or put them in during the call.
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Further, judging by several reports across the Apple forums, it is safe to say that both wired headphones and headsets as well Bluetooth ones cause the music player to start playing music automatically on the iPhone.

Facers of the problem have reportedly already tried basic workarounds like rebooting their device, setting up their Bluetooth headset once again, resetting the settings, but to no avail.

Contacting Apple is fruitless as they ask to repeat stuff that a user has already done like updating their iPhone to the latest version or performing a reset.

The first complaints of the possible bug date back to 2019, or right after the iOS 13 update. Since then, little to no progress seems to have been made and there is still no sign of an official fix.

Thankfully, we have picked a few workarounds from the forums for this peculiar issue and you are free to give them a try.

1. Disable background activation: You can prevent your music app from being activated by heading over to Settings > General > Background App Refresh, at least as per the users.

You should disable background activation for all music apps. It solves the problem for me if Spotify and apple music apps are not loaded. Apple should fix this bug!
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2. Turn off cellular data access for the rogue media app:

I had this problem too when connected to my car. Turning off the Cellular Data switch solved it:
Settings>Music>(Allow Music to Access) Cellular Data > OFF.
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4. ‘Pretend’ to delete the music app: This workaround is rather odd but has actually done the job for a few users, and is hence definitely worth a shot.

5. Perform a factory reset: If nothing else seems to work, then your last resort could be to simply factory reset your phone. While it is not guaranteed to do the job, it does work in some cases.

To do so, head over to Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content & Settings, and perform the necessary. Just be sure to back up your data beforehand.

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