LONDON — Mobile phones store so much of our digital lives, including emails, social media and bank accounts, photos and chat messages, so when they’re stolen or lost, they can be more than just a lost device. This can cause major confusion.
In some places, cell phone theft has skyrocketed and is now a common problem, with thieves on e-bikes snatching phones from pedestrians’ hands, knocking them off restaurant tables, and subways. There have been incidents of pickpocketing.
200 mobile phones are stolen every day in the UK in ‘snatch theft’ and the government has promised to crack down on crime and is meeting with tech companies and equipment manufacturers to find solutions.
Here are the steps you can take before and after you lose your phone.
There are several things you can do to make it less painful if your phone is stolen. Some of these features are more technical in nature and are often overlooked.
Lock down as much as possible. At a minimum, a password or biometric scan is required to unlock the device. You can also add similar requirements to important individual apps such as bank accounts, WhatsApp, and Signal to protect your finances and chats from theft.
It also enables the Find Your Device feature, which is available on both iOS and Android. Samsung also offers its own service called SmartThings Find.
You probably have a lot of important photos saved in your camera roll. We recommend backing it up along with your contacts, calendar items, and other files. Google and Apple offer cloud-based backup services, but their free versions have limited storage space. You can also backup files to an external hard drive, memory card, or laptop.
Some police departments and phone companies recommend turning off message previews. This prevents your reset or login code from being visible to thieves who try to break into your account when your phone is locked. To do this on your iPhone, for example, go to the Notifications section of the Settings menu and tap (Show Preview).
Recent iOS and Android updates include many new features designed to reduce theft.
iPhone users can turn on stolen device protection. This makes it much harder for phone thieves to access key features and settings. Many thieves will want to erase and reset your data to resell it, but if this feature is turned on, they will need a facial or fingerprint scan to do so. Apple recently updated its “Activation Lock” feature to make it harder for thieves to sell stolen phone parts.
Meanwhile, Android smartphones can now use artificial intelligence to detect movement that indicates someone is about to snatch your phone from your hand and drive away on foot or bike, and instantly lock your screen. There is also a feature called Private Space that allows you to hide sensitive files on your phone.
Make a note of your phone’s serial number (also known as the IMEI number). If your phone eventually recovers, you can link it to your phone. Type (asterisk)#06# on your phone’s keypad to call. If you’ve already lost your phone, you can also find it elsewhere, such as in the box it came in.
If you are unlucky enough to have your phone stolen, please report it to the police. If you have insurance that covers your device, contact your insurance company. Contact your phone company to freeze your number and issue a replacement SIM card or ESIM. Notify your bank to keep them on the lookout for suspicious transactions.
Try locating your phone using the Find Device feature. iPhone users can visit iCloud.com/find from a web browser, and Android users can visit www.google.com/android/find. Samsung also offers its own services for Galaxy phones.
These services display your phone’s current or last known location on a map. This is also useful if you lose your phone somewhere in the house. Apple says it uses Bluetooth to ping nearby Apple devices using the same network behind AirTags tracking devices, even when your phone can’t connect to the internet or is turned off. It says it can be sent. Google says its new Pixel smartphones can use similar technology to be located for “several hours” after they are turned off.
You can have the sound play even if your phone is on silent. Setting your phone to Lost Mode locks your phone and displays messages and contact details on the screen for anyone who finds it. iOS Lost Mode also suspends your Apple Pay cards and passes.
If your device appears in an unfamiliar location on the map and you suspect it has been stolen, experts say it’s better to call the police than try to retrieve it yourself.
“We do not recommend confronting thieves yourself,” says cybersecurity firm Norton.
If you can’t find your phone, there are some final steps you can take.
Log out of any accounts that you may have access to on your phone and remove them from the list of trusted devices you use to obtain multi-factor authentication codes. However, make sure you can get those codes somewhere else, such as by email.
Then, as a last resort, you can wipe your phone remotely to eliminate the possibility of your data falling into the wrong hands. However, please be careful. According to Apple, if your iPhone is offline, Remote Erase will only occur the next time it comes back online. However, if you find your phone before it is erased, you can cancel your request.
Google warns that SD memory cards inserted into Android smartphones may not be able to be erased remotely. Also, if your phone is wiped, it will no longer appear in the Find My Device feature.
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