How to find a lost or stolen cell phone

Cell phones have long been an integral part of most people's lives. And their loss or theft becomes a significant problem for many people. After all, the memory of gadgets stores not only important contacts, personal photos and necessary documents, but also passwords from personal accounts and payment system data. And if a few years ago, the search for a lost smartphone often caused significant difficulties, but today everything is somewhat different. Currently, there are a lot of both official and third-party services that allow you to quickly find a cell phone. And below we will consider the main ones.

How to find a lost iPhone

Some users perceive Face ID or Touch ID as unnecessary features that make using a cell phone difficult. But they can help protect your personal information if your gadget falls into the hands of a stranger.

To protect your device, go to Settings and go to Face ID or Touch ID. Following the software prompts, configure the presented functions. Even if the first few days additional manipulations when unlocking the phone will be inconvenient, after a week you will perform this "ritual" automatically.

To make it easier to find your iPhone after it's lost or stolen, we recommend setting up Find My iPhone right after you buy it.

1. Log in to iCloud.
2. Scroll down the page and find the Find My iPhone feature.
3. Open it and move the sliders next to both features to the right.

In the latest versions of iOS, Find My iPhone has been replaced by the Locator app. With its help, you can not only find your missing device, but also learn the geolocations of your friends and family and share your GPS coordinates.

1. To activate the application, enter "Settings". Only now instead of "Find My iPhone" find the "Locator" section.

2. Enable all three options presented: "Find iPhone", "Enable Offline Search", and "Last Geoposition".

The Locator app, like Find My iPhone, has the following functionality:

• Determines the current location of devices: iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac computers;
• Activates the missing mode to lock and track the device;
• Plays audible tones when searching for a lost phone (even when sound is turned off on the device);
• Remotely wipes all personal information from iPhone storage;
• Launches the "Activation Lock" (access to the gadget can be restored only after entering your Apple ID and its password).

Basic steps after losing your iPhone

First of all, you need to find the device on the map, because it is possible that the smartphone is not appropriated by intruders, and you just forgot it at work or could not find it at home.

• Log on to the official website iCloud. To do this, you need to enter your Apple ID and password in the appropriate lines.
• Select "Find iPhone" from the main menu and re-enter your iCloud password.
• This will open a map with a green dot marking the location of your device.
• At the top of the screen, select the name of your smartphone and click on it. You will see a window with three options:
  - "Play sound" - when you press this button, your phone will emit a loud beep;
  - "Erase iPhone" - allows you to remotely erase all information stored in the device's memory;
  - "Missing Mode" - locks your phone, preventing unauthorized people from using it.
  
• Select "Missing Mode" and enter the four-digit passcode. Without this code, it will not be possible to unlock the device.
• In the next window, enter a phone number where the person who found the iPhone can call you.
• In the last window, you can write a message that will pop up on the screen of the lost device.

Now, if someone finds your phone, they'll see a lock message and you'll get an email notification that the device has been found.

How to find a phone on Android

Google services are the first to come to the aid of Android device users.

• Go to your Google Account and go to the "Security" section.
• Go to the "Your Devices" page and select the gadget you are interested in.
• Next, press the "Find device" button. After re-entering the password, the phone search page will open, where you can select the desired action:
• View recent events related to account security;
• lock the gadget; - call the smartphone;
• Sign out of your account on your device;
• contact your cell phone provider;

First, try calling your phone. If the gadget is not nearby, we recommend locking the device and deleting all data from it. This will prevent intruders from using your smartphone and gaining access to your personal information.

Searching with Find My Device

To use this application, it must be pre-installed on your smartphone. You can do this either from the phone itself or from a PC or laptop by going to the Google Play website. After that, you will need to grant additional rights for the offer, allowing you to make changes to the device operation.

Find My Device allows you to:

• Track on the map where the selected gadget is located (if it is not possible to find out the current geodata, the application will show the last known location);
• Use building diagrams to make it easier and faster to find a device in a mall, airport, or other very large facility;
• Draw routes from your location point to app-defined device coordinates;
• Make a call to your phone (the gadget will emit a loud beep even when the volume is turned off);
• Delete all personal information from your smartphone or tablet and lock your device;
• Get information about battery level and installed software.

For the application to work properly, it needs to allow access to geodata and contact list. If you want to find your Android, open the Find My Device web page from any browser. Here you can call your smartphone, block or clear it.

If the service doesn't see your gadget, it's either turned off or not connected to the internet.

Alternative ways to find Android

Most smartphone companies, including Samsung and Xiaomi, have their own services for finding lost phones. But in order to use them, it is important to remember the device's login and password (these data are usually requested by the device when the phone is turned on for the first time).

The functionality of such services is similar to the ones presented above, and they are also operated through a web interface opened in any of the available browsers.

Unfortunately, all of the above methods allow you to find your cell phone only as long as it stays on and maintains an Internet connection. After the smartphone's battery dies, you can find it only by using its location history: all of the above services display the last coordinates of the gadget (the place where it was before the network connection was cut).

MobileTracker - online application for phone number search

One of the options to maximize the accuracy оTo determine the location of your cell phone - MobileTracker. The web application tracks the movement of your device in real time and determines its GPS coordinates with an accuracy of several meters. Even if you forgot the login and password of the account tied to your phone, did not set up the necessary applications or disabled important functions, MobiTracker will still be able to find your smartphone. The gadget searches by phone number and uses mobile operator data, which it in turn receives from your SIM card.

MobileTracker does not require additional cell phone settings, installation of third-party software on the device or any other manipulations to confirm the search. To initialize the request, it is enough to enter the phone number in the international format and press the "Search" button.

Conclusion

Even if your phone falls into the hands of an intruder, this person will not know that you have searched for the gadget. The web application works in a hidden mode: it is not displayed on the target device and does not send any notifications to it. Thanks to this software, you will be able to find not only the device itself, but also the person who currently has it.