Learn how to find a lost or stolen Android smartphone using simple steps and precautions to protect your personal data.
If you have lost your Android smartphone or it has been stolen by criminals, you do not need to immediately sound the alarm. Progress does not stand still, so there are a number of ways to find the gadget. You will learn about them from our material.
Try to find the stolen phone
The chances are slim, but you can try. To do this:
- Log in to your Google account from your PC or laptop;
- Then go to the ” Find Phone ” page;
- It displays the smartphones linked to your account;
- Choose the one that is stolen;
- If the person who stole or found the smartphone did not turn it off, you will see its location.
You can go to this place and, if you are lucky, find the smartphone there. In the place where the gadget is located, on the “Find Phone” page, it makes sense to click on “Play Sound”. The smartphone will make a loud signal and, perhaps, you will hear it. By the way, if the smartphone is turned off, it will make a sound as soon as it is turned on.
There are also third-party applications for finding a smartphone:
- Bitdefender Mobile Security – with its help you can not only find your smartphone, but also disable it;
- Avast Mobile Security is an Android smartphone security app that can only be disabled by the owner;
- Lost Android – will help you block your smartphone and delete all data from it.
Turn on location services
For a smartphone to be displayed on the map, geolocation services must be enabled. Therefore, it is recommended to enable them when purchasing any smartphone. This is done as follows:
- Go to “Settings”;
- Next “Location”;
- And after “Location Services”;
- Move the slider to the right.
How to block your device if your phone is stolen
If the user is sure that the smartphone has been stolen and will not be returned to him, then it makes sense to block the device. This can also be done via a laptop. This is done via a Google account:
- Log in to your Google account from your PC/laptop;
- Then open the ” Find Phone ” page;
- Select the smartphone that was stolen;
- Next, click on “Lock device”.
If the smartphone is turned off, it will be blocked as soon as it is turned on. The attacker will not be able to do anything with it.
How to Erase All Data from a Stolen Smartphone
If the user is afraid that thieves will be able to view their photos, important text files or guess the password to banking applications, then it makes sense to erase all data from the stolen smartphone. To do this:
- Log in to your Google account from your PC or laptop;
- Open the ” Find Phone ” page;
- Select the stolen device;
- Click on “Reset device settings”.
- If the gadget is turned off, all data will be erased when it is turned on for the first time.
Block your SIM card, change the number linked to the card, change passwords
Another important step to take is to block and reissue the SIM card. You should also contact your bank and change the number linked to the card. Also, do not give out codes and PINs if someone unknown calls you after your smartphone is lost.
Finally, to make yourself even more secure, you should change the passwords on your Google account and important applications.
Search smartphone by IMEI
A mobile operator can try to detect a smartphone signal using IMEI. To do this, you need to provide them with the SIM card number or IMEI. The catch is that this is only done at the request of law enforcement agencies.
The police, by the way, know how to find a smartphone by IMEI. But if the thief is experienced, he will most likely disassemble the device into parts, get rid of SIM cards and radio modules. In this case, finding the gadget is unrealistic.
How to maximally protect your data in case of theft
The following steps need to be completed:
- Enable geolocation;
- Enable password, fingerprint and face lock system;
- Add PIN codes for SIM card;
- Remove bank card details from correspondence with friends and relatives.