How to find a stolen cell phone?

If you've lost your phone, we've all been there. One minute it was in your pocket, and now it's gone, lost to the phone fairy, forgotten about the seat on the couch, or misplaced during a busy day. Maybe it's just in your other coat, or maybe it's already in the hands of someone on the sidewalk. Either way, all you want to do is get it back. Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to catch your lost phone. If it's a smartphone running iOS or Android, chances are it already has the software needed to search for it or you can install an app to track your phone. Here's our guide on how to find a lost phone or similar device.

Smartphones - If the lost phone happens to be a smartphone, the major smartphone platform providers include phone retrieval technology in the smartphone. Typically, the way these apps work is through an account associated with your device. For Android devices, this is your Google account, and for iPhones, this is your iCloud account. Both allow you to remotely lock and wipe your phone, make it ring, and set a special message to alert anyone who finds it.

Of course, these features are only as good as your phone's battery. If your smartphone dies, it's just as easy to find as your wallet or anything else you might have misplaced. We also recommend using caution when communicating with anyone who has found a smartphone. Be careful to avoid giving out any personal information, such as your home address, until you know you are dealing with someone you can trust. Insist on sending a phone number or email address to tell the Good Samaritan how to return your phone. Here's how each operating system works.

How to Find a Lost Android Phone - Not only does Android offer a Google-exclusive service for finding and managing your device remotely, it also offers a number of third-party apps designed specifically for locating smartphones. The easiest to use is Find My Device, which is built directly into your Android smartphone through Google Play Services, it can also be used in the browser or downloaded from the Google Play Store. Most devices running Android 2.3 or higher should be able to use this feature.

Using this feature is as simple as searching "where is my phone" in Google, which will prompt the service to start looking for your smartphone. We've written before about Find My Device and its ability to call you, set a new password, and have your phone ring from a distance, among various other features for notification purposes. While you can configure Find My Device ahead of time, the service should be available if you lose or misplace your phone. It will help you search for your device using Wi-Fi or GPS.

To verify that the Find My Device feature is enabled on your Android smartphone, go to Settings > Google or Google Services > Security and make sure that under Find Find this device remotely in the My Devices section is turned on.

If you can't find your smartphone, you can always wipe it to prevent sensitive information from falling into the wrong hands. However, your device needs an internet connection and enough juice to communicate with you. In Android 5.0 Lollipop, Google also introduced factory reset protection. It's designed to prevent potential thieves from stealing your phone, wiping it, and then using or selling it. If you factory reset an FRP-enabled phone and try to set it up as a new device, you will be prompted to enter the username and password of the last Google account registered on the device, and if you cannot, the phone will remain locked.

You can also install third-party apps to help you find your phone. Cerberus Anti-theft is an excellent application that provides remote access and control, allowing you to get more information about your phone's whereabouts.

It offers many other features, such as more granular control over how you track your device, screenshots of what the device is doing, photos from the camera that may catch potential thieves, and other more detailed Find My notifications Equipment not provided. If your device is rooted, you can use more features to prevent someone from resetting or turning off your device until you can restore it.

Another option for select Samsung smartphones is the Find My Mobile service. It can be used to find a lost phone, lock it or wipe it completely. However, you will need a Samsung account and the remote control option enabled on your phone. To see if your smartphone has Find My Phone, go to Settings > Lock Screen & Security. If you see Find My Mobile in the menu, you can use the service. You can enable the remote control option through Settings>Security>Find My Phone>Remote Control.

How to find a lost iPhone - The best and only way to recover your iPhone is through Apple's native Find My iPhone function. The app comes pre-installed on every iOS device and displays your lost device on a map to help you find and manage it easily. However, you will need a computer or other iOS device with the Find My iPhone app to deploy this feature. Unfortunately, these features are only available when the phone is powered on and connected to the internet.

To use this feature, simply log into iCloud and turn on the Find My iPhone feature. The Apple service will place your phone on a map and give you options to play sounds on the device, send messages to your phone in "Lost Mode" or delete its contents. All of this can be done without any additional configuration

Find My iPhone can also find your Mac, iPod and iPad. This is a very effective tool that can track any iOS device. Don't believe us? Check out this story about police using the app to arrest criminals. This is just one of many similar stories where phone tracking software helped save the day. Apple also uses another security method called Activation Lock to prevent iPhones from being stolen. Activation Lock requires you to enter your Apple ID and password before you can disable Find My iPhone, wipe the device, or reactivate it.

How to find your not-so-smart phone - Step 1: Dial your phone. Listen for rings or vibrations and try to locate your phone with proven human detection. If your phone is indeed lost and is in someone else's hands, they may answer if they plan to return it.

Step 2: Review your steps. Do a complete visual search. If you don't hear a ring or vibrate when you make a call, don't immediately assume that your phone is far away, the battery may be dead.

Step 3: Send a text message to your phone. If you think someone has stolen or may have found your phone, send a text message to your phone with your contact information and your reward offer. There are many online services that allow you to send free text messages, such as txt2day.com.

Step 4: Alert your service provider. If you've lost hope of finding it, call your wireless carrier and let them know your phone is missing. Ask if they offer GPS location services. If not, ask them to suspend service on your phone to avoid any possible fraudulent charges. Carriers have different policies on this, but it's always worth checking, even for smartphones, and this FCC page has a handy list of numbers.

Step 5: Register the lost phone. If you know your phone's IMEI number or have it written down somewhere, register it with Immobilize. Step 6: Prepare for the next time you lose your phone. Maybe you are one of those people who always lose their phone. You may want to consider signing up for a tracking service such as AccuTracking.