Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for smartphones to be stolen or lost. When such a problem comes, the question immediately arises of how to find the phone if it is turned off. Because you can at least make a call to the switched on device. But if it was turned off, then most likely it is theft. So, let's figure out what needs to be done in such situations.

Knowing IMEI

You can find a switched off phone, be it Android or iPhone, by its unique code. These numbers are assigned to any device upon release, they are indicated on the case itself, battery, box or packaging.

You can also find out if you have it by dialing in the phone *#06# , you will receive a service message with the equipment identification number.

This number is suitable for those who are used to being prepared in advance for any situation and, having your smartphone in hand, you enter the required combination of numbers in order to then write down the IMEI in a notebook.

So, it doesn't matter which way, but you found out the device ID, what to do with it?

Write a statement to the police about the theft of the gadget. Law enforcement agencies will search for him in their database. However, do not rely too much on a quick result, since there are hundreds of the same lost mobile phones.

Nevertheless, if you are very lucky, you can still find a switched off phone by IMEI.

Contacting SIM

At this point, you still need a unique device ID, but the trick is different. All mobile operators can find the switched off phone via satellite. GPS is used to send a signal to your SIM card. As soon as the card recognizes the signal, the nearest cell towers will notify about it.

Based on their location, law enforcement agencies will be able to quickly find the mobile.

What is needed for this?

• Go to the nearest customer service center of your operator (or contact support by phone).
• Provide your phone number and IMEI.
• Indicate the number of the contract for the SIM card.
• You may also need passport details.

Thus, it will be more efficient to find a switched off smartphone by phone number.
In addition, knowing it, you can block your SIM card so that an intruder cannot access your personal information.

Useful Apps

If you are looking for how to find a switched off phone through a computer, here are some great programs.

When the device is off, both services will show its last location when it is on. These features have the functions of ringing and blocking the phone, but they will become relevant if it is still turned on.

Looking for an iPhone

IOS devices have a convenient Find iPhone feature. Note that it must be activated before loss, otherwise there will be no use from it. Set up the program immediately upon purchase in order to use it in the right situation.

With its help, you can track the location of the gadget online. If it is off, then the program will show the last place where it was still in operation. And it will report the coordinates when it appears on the network again.

The device will be searched for on iCloud.com under Find My iPhone.

In addition, Apple phones have Lost Mode (Lost Mode). By programming it in advance, you can specify a specific text. For example, a request to call a specific number in case the device is found. This text will be displayed as soon as the smartphone is connected to charging.

How to protect yourself in advance

When buying a new device, a modern person should not only install all his favorite utilities on it, but also take care of its safety, so as not to puzzle over how to find a lost phone if it is turned off / on / discharged.

Be sure to install avast! Mobile Security, which can be downloaded from the active link or from Google Play.

After the installation is complete, go to Settings, set the PIN code protection and Protection against deletion.

Then download the avast! App from the playmarket. Anti-Theft, this feature will keep the data on your phone out of the hands of an intruder. For the application to work, you need to complete your Avast account. Go to id.avast.com and find Create account now. Enter your email and password.

1. Start avast! Anti-Theft:
2. Enter your name.
3. Write down the pin code
4. Indicate the phone number of a friend to which the SMS will be sent if the SIM card is changed in the device. It is this function that can help you find a stolen phone. Include the number of your husband / wife, mom, close friend, or your second contact.
5. Now in Account Settings, enter your phone number and password.

Thus, you have tied the Avast account to your Android. Now, in case of theft or loss of your smartphone, you can take the necessary actions with it directly on the avast.com website in your account.

Finding a gadget using an app

If you are so lucky that it was not in vain that you prepared and installed the above programs, and as a result you lost your phone, you can control it via SMS.

Let's say that a person instead of your SIM card inserted another into the device. You will immediately find out about this through a message that will come to the number left as a backup. Now from this backup phone send commands to the new number in your mobile.

Commands must be written in the following form: pin code "command" (separated by a space). For example, if your pin is 111111, then the commands will look like this:

• 111111 LOST - reports that the phone has been lost;
• 111111 LOCK - device lock;
• 111111 UNLOCK - unlocking;
• 111111 SIREN ON - turn on the siren;
• 111111 SIREN OFF - turn off the siren;
• 111111 LOCATE - detecting a gadget.

A complete list of commands can be found at avast.ru/free-mobile-security-b.

Outcome

Now you know if you can actually find your phone if it's turned off and you can navigate in an emergency. Search through Google account will be relevant when the device is turned on, so we did not consider this method.

However, before reporting the loss, think if he was lost somewhere at home: under a pillow, in a blanket, in a bathroom, even look into the refrigerator. It is not uncommon for a mobile phone to run out of battery and you have forgotten where you left it at home. And you begin to think that she was stolen.

If you are sure that this is the work of a thief, be sure to contact the police.

Cases when someone lost a phone and returned it intact are much more common today than in the days of ordinary mobile phones. Equipping your Android smartphone with technologies for geolocation, bearing in and by Wi-Fi zones, you have a good chance of avoiding potential troubles even on the most scattered day.

Follow this instruction to find your lost phone right away

This guide will help you connect to the device remotely and even block it in case of theft. Moreover, it is not so important what state the gadget is in. Google took care of the situation when the owner lost the switched off phone or with a dead battery. And here's where to start.

1. Find any device with Internet access (another smartphone, laptop, computer, tablet).
2. Go to the search engine Google.com.
3. Enter in the search bar " Where's my phone"Or in English" Where’s my phone"And select the first result in the search" Phone search - Google Account».
4. Or use the direct link to speed up the process.
5. Next, in the form that opens, select "Log in to your account" and enter your Google account data (these data represent the gmail address and password from this email box, which are entered when you first start your Android smartphone and are usually written somewhere).

Further steps to restore access to your mobile device may vary depending on the model and equipment.

As an example, we can cite, in which orientation in Wi-Fi networks of the IEEE 802.11n standard is added to the A-GPS system, which makes it possible to more accurately position the module in space. Or with the Helio P25 processor, which economically consumes battery power when GPS / GLONASS is activated, as well as Android 7.0 Nougat, which provides a large number of Google software services to protect the device from loss and theft.

This instruction will help you find out the exact location of an Android smartphone accidentally left in an unknown place, provided that it is or was recently in touch. Moreover, it has a battery charge, the operating system version is not lower than Android 4.4 KitKat, the settings do not forbid detection by GPS, Wi-Fi or mobile networks. But what if you lost your phone and can't find it via satellite?

Google has provided detection options in other circumstances:

• if the device does not have an active GPS, then detection via Wi-Fi and mobile communication is turned on;
• when all communication functions are disabled or absent (for example, in the subway or basement of a building), the last known location of the phone is displayed;
• you can also find a disabled phone by the last point of its detection on the network (provided that you did not prevent Google from recording location history).

If you have not managed to restore the last location of the device, then there are other ways besides the official Android service.

If you lost a switched off phone on which GPS and Wi-Fi are forcibly prohibited

Check out all the options below and try to follow them consistently. This will increase the chances of your digital companion returning.

1. Call the carrier from another phone and ask to block the SIM card, stating that there is a threat to personal data and the risk of losing access to the mobile bank. You will be asked for IMEI (the 15-digit number is unique for each phone and is indicated on the complete box). Find out about the ability to locate the phone on the cells of the cell towers.
2. Contact the nearest police station if there is even a minimal risk of theft.

What you need to contact the police in Belarus:

• phone purchase receipt, which will be documentary proof of ownership;
• a completed loss statement indicating the last name, first name and patronymic of the person who lost the device;
• in the application, be sure to indicate the date and time of the noticed loss, a description of your situation in your own words.

1. Ask your acquaintances and friends to spread the post about the disappearance of your phone on social networks. This very often helps to detect the loss "among friends" or even find the device at flea markets, especially if it is. Do not hesitate to be able to track the appearance of the same phone yourself among other recently posted second-hand things on the Internet.

The best prevention of such a nuisance is to prepare for the situation in advance, so that in your puffs and nerves you never wonder how to find your lost phone. Already for free and without unnecessary nerves, you will immediately get access to an Android device if the geographic positioning function is always active on it using A-GPS, Wi-Fi and cellular networks. To do this, it is recommended to get a smartphone with a modern processor and a good battery, like that of (4200 mAh lithium polymer) or (in addition to the frameless design, it has an energy efficient configuration of a compact 5.3-inch screen with a 3000 mAh battery).

It's hard to find someone these days who doesn't have a cell phone. Now the mobile phone is not only a means of communication, but also a storage of very important and valuable information. These are not only phone numbers and photos, but also various applications with which you can manage your bank account or e-wallet. Therefore, losing your electronic gadget can be a real problem. How can you find a lost phone and protect yourself from this in the future?

What to do if you lost your phone

There are several ways to find a lost phone, it primarily depends on how and where you lost it.

If you lost your phone at home

If you lost your phone in your apartment, then consider yourself lucky, because in such circumstances, the chances of finding a mobile device are much higher than in other cases.

The easiest way is to call your number from another phone, but this method is suitable only if the gadget is turned on.

If you know that you have it turned off, then the following search methods are suitable:

1. Remember where and when you last held the phone in your hands, and what you did next. Go through the entire route from the beginning, following the same steps, looking around in parallel. You could have dropped it behind the sofa, left it on the shelf and put something on top, or even put it in the refrigerator by mistake, it happens.
2. Consider even the most unusual options at first glance. After all, you can, holding the phone in one hand, and the banana skin in the other, distract yourself and accidentally throw what you had planned in the trash bin.
3. Ask those who were in the apartment with you at the time of the loss if they took your phone to call. They may have moved your cell phone elsewhere, or they may have forgotten to return it. If you have children, then look in their toys, children are very attracted to modern gadgets, and they always pull their little hands towards them.
4. Combining the search process with general cleaning is very useful, it will help you to more thoroughly explore all the hidden places that you would not think to check. As a result, you will not only find your loss, but also make your house cleaner, and, possibly, find something else from the lost earlier.
5. Use a flashlight to check areas that aren't getting enough light. For example, under a sofa or behind a wardrobe.
6. If you know that an alarm is set on your device, then most likely it will go off even if the phone is turned off. Make sure that there is silence in the apartment by the appointed time, listen carefully and go to the sound.

Video on how to find your phone

If you lost your phone on the street or in a public place

Of course, your chances of finding a phone in such a situation are much lower than in the first case, but it's still worth trying.

Try to identify where you may have lost your phone. Remember where you used it the last time, if you usually carry your phone in your bag, you might have dropped it when you took something out of it. Your memories will help you to narrow your search significantly.

You can post ads along your route, where you inform about your situation and promise to pay a reward to the person who found your cell phone. It is much more convenient to get a reward for your find than trying to sell a phone without documents.

Finding a switched off phone is very difficult, you will increase your chances of success if you install one of the applications on your phone in advance that will help you find your smartphone. One of these applications is Signal Flare, it will help in the event that the phone has turned off due to a flat battery. As soon as the system signals that the battery is running low, the application starts recording the location of the gadget, it uses GPS and a Wi-Fi network signal.

If your phone is stolen

In this case, it is very important to act quickly, it is easiest to find the thief in hot pursuit. Contact the police station in the area where the theft took place. Write a statement, indicate a description of the suspect, if there is one, tell the time and place where you found the loss.

Give the number in the application IMEI your device. This individual identification number is assigned to each smartphone, you can find it on a sticker that is located under the battery in the phone or on the box from your device. IMEI consists of fifteen digits, it includes the phone model number, manufacturer's country and an individual code. This number remains unchanged even if you change the SIM card.

You can download special software in advance, which, using the IMEI number of your phone, will inform you via SMS to the selected number that the SIM card has been changed in your device and will send a new phone number.

By order of the court, the mobile operator can provide law enforcement agencies with information using your phone identification number, which will include information about the time of calls, their duration and, most importantly, the location of the mobile device relative to the nearest telephone tower. Such information is stored in the server's memory billing.

In theory, everything sounds easy and simple, but in practice you will face problems in detecting your phone using this method.

1. First, thousands of telephones are lost and stolen in cities every day, and law enforcement agencies are in no hurry to open a case for each of these cases. Perhaps you will be dissuaded from writing a statement, hinting that the chances of finding the loss are very low.
2. Secondly, mobile operators are not always inclined to cooperate, without a court order, you may be denied to provide billing data, referring to the legislative framework, which does not regulate the process of work in such cases.
3. Thirdly, a request from law enforcement agencies to provide data can be processed for a very long time, during which time an attacker can already change the IMEI number by reloading the software on the phone, which makes it impossible to further identify it in the operator's database.

How to protect yourself from loss or theft of your phone

It is impossible to protect yourself 100% from the possibility of losing your phone, but you can minimize this probability by following simple rules and recommendations.

• Always keep your phone in the same place. If you go with a bag, then allocate a separate inner pocket for your mobile, preferably with a zipper. Thus, you will get used to the fact that the phone is constantly there and you will immediately notice its loss. At home, keep your phone, for example, on your bedside table or anywhere else, so that you always know where your favorite gadget is.
• There are headsets that notify the owner that the mobile device to which they are connected is more than five meters away. This signal will help you not to leave your phone in the office or on a table in a cafe, and will also inform you that your phone may have been stolen, and right now the thief is running away.
• During rush hour public transport is crowded with a lot of people, everyone is very close to each other and in such a situation it is almost impossible to feel that your phone is being pulled out. To protect yourself from this, use headphones, turn on your favorite music on your phone, this will not only brighten up the trip, but also the sudden disconnection of the song will signal that someone has stolen the cell.
• Hang a keychain on your phone that is specially designed to help you find your missing item in your home or office. There are several principles of operation of such devices, some begin to emit an audible signal in response to a clap or whistle, while others respond to a signal from a transmitter, which you can keep in your wallet or bag.

Losing your phone has always been a frustrating experience, but with advances in technology, it can be a fixable problem. It is best to worry in advance about the likelihood of such an incident: install special programs designed to help find the loss; set a password when unlocking so that attackers cannot use your phone; save all important data to the cloud so that you can always use it.

Due to the increasing incidence of mobile phone thefts, many are more and more interested in how to find a lost Android phone.

In general, if you lost your phone, then there are several ways to find it.

Of course, there are trivial ways like submitting an ad that implies a reward for finding a phone.

This, too, should not be neglected, but you can return to this only in the most extreme cases.

Before that, you should use one of the methods described below.

Via standard control

Important: To find a phone using software methods, it is necessary to perform certain manipulations on it even before it was lost. Otherwise, all that remains is to contact the police.

This means that almost anyone can use the standard Android phone search and control tool.

But, again, to search for a device through Google, the following actions must be done on it even before the loss:

1. First, you should go to the settings of your phone and select the "Security" item there (in Figure No. 1.a it is shown with a red frame).
2. Then go to "Device administrators" (Figure 1.b).
3. After that, in front of the item "Android Remote Control" put a tick as shown in Figure 1. c.

This sequence of actions will allow in the future to find out the location of the mobile phone via the Internet.

Actually, to search for a device, you need to do the following:

• Go to the link for remote control of mobile phones - https://www.google.com/android/devicemanager.
• Log in there, that is, enter your username and password, and then click on the "Login" button. By the way, if you are not a user of Google services, it is better to register.

• Then everything will happen automatically. The user will see a window with the content similar to that shown in Figure 3.

As you can see, here you can lock your phone right through the computer by pressing the corresponding button in the field highlighted in blue in Figure 3.

There are also buttons "Call" (the phone will receive a call from the robot) and "Clear" (remove all data from the device's memory).

You can also see that you can find out where the phone is now, that is, the location on the map, and when it was connected to the Internet (the whole field is shown with a red frame).

Finally, the device model itself is written above (highlighted in a green frame).

Important: On the latest versions of Android, no settings need to be made, all this is created automatically. Therefore, even if you did not enable remote access on your phone as described above, but were authorized in Google services, it is quite possible that you can find your phone!

Through additional programs

In addition to the standard means for remote access, there are many other programs with similar functionality. Lost Android is probably the best one.

You can install it in the same way as any other program - go to Google Play, enter “Lost Android” there and press the “Install” button.

But the most interesting thing is that after installation, this program does not appear as Lost Android, but as Personal Notes with a notebook icon.

This is so that thieves don't have any suspicions - very reasonable!

In general, Lost Android needs to be installed and run. After that, the program must be given administrator rights.

To do this, at the first start, you need to press the corresponding button (it is highlighted in figure 4 with a red frame).

After that, you should go to the official website of this application - http://www.androidlost.com/. There you need to log in again, and again through Google.

To do this, in the upper right corner there is a corresponding button shown in figure 5 in red.

After authorization, which occurs in exactly the same way as described above - entering your username, password and clicking on the "Login" button, you must allow the program to use this account by clicking the appropriate button (it is highlighted in Figure 6 by arrows).

After that, the user will see such a message, which is highlighted with a red frame in Figure 7. It indicates that everything went well.

Now you can go to the "Management" menu (highlighted in green).

After going to the "Control" menu, the user will see the entire list of commands. In particular, to find out the location of the phone, you must click the "Send location" button.

Note: The two methods described above make it possible to find even a switched off phone due to the fact that the meansGoogle they record the moment when the phone was last connected to the Internet and thus can find out where it was then.

Other features include turning on the siren, sending SMS messages, viewing files and much more. In general, this is a much more functional program than the standard Google tool.

But this method is suitable only if the user has installed Lost Android in advance.

What if there is no such program?

The last way

If the two methods described above are not relevant in your case, there is only one thing to do - contact the police with a statement about theft.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to find the device by the phone number.

But you, as a victim, together with the statement can attach proof that this is really your device. This evidence may include the following:

• warranty card;
• a check from the store;
• phone box;
• IMEI code.

Everything is clear on the first three points, but questions may arise with the last one.

In general, the IMEI code is actually an identification number of a mobile phone - it is unique for each device.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to find a device by IMEI code just like that.

But when providing such, law enforcement agencies will know exactly who is the owner of the device.

In addition, if you have an IMEI code, you can try to add your phone to the database of lost devices - sndeep.info.

This will enable law enforcement officers of the area where the phone is located to find it and return it to the owner.

In addition, an ordinary person who could simply find a device can also find information about its loss on this site and return it for a reward.

The interface of this site looks like this.

Advice for those who have not lost their phone yet: Be sure to find out yourIMEI code and write it down somewhere. The easiest way to do this is by typing the key combination *#06# .

Success in your search and take care of your phones before they have been stolen or lost!

The interface of another convenient program for finding a phone in case of its loss is shown in the video below.

How to find a lost phone - programs for android

In this video I will show you how to find a phone on the map if you do not know where you left it. How are phones found?

Alas, everyone may be faced with the question of how to find a lost Android phone, so we decided to understand it in our article, so that in case of loss, you know how to act correctly. Often, when a phone is lost or stolen, a person contacts the police, but the chances of being found are minimal. Fortunately, there are other reliable and effective ways to find an android phone if you lost it, which we will talk about later. You will not have to perform any complicated actions, but it is important that you have a registered Google account. If you have not used it on your phone, then it will be impossible to find it.

You will need to activate the “Remote control” setting, for which you need to go to the “My location” item in the smartphone settings and check the “Allow tracking coordinates” box. This will help you in the event of theft and loss, so we recommend that you keep the function on at all times. Although it eats up the battery charge, without it there is practically no chance of finding a device in case of loss.

Ways to find a lost Android phone through a computer

The question of whether you can find an Android phone if you lost it has a positive answer, but much depends on the circumstances. With Android Device Manager, you can search from your computer. But if the attackers have already managed to reset the settings on the device, or if it is in the off state, then the functionality will be truncated. But thieves do not always guess to do this, so there is still a chance of finding the device. To do this, we perform the following manipulations on our PC:

• Follow the link https://www.google.com/android/devicemanager where you get access for remote control;
• We log in using the data of our Google account;
• A window appears in front of you, containing the following information.

When deciding how to find an Android phone, if you lost it, you will see through your computer that from here you can block it, call or erase all the information stored in memory.

What if you can't find your phone at home?

In the conditions of everyday hustle and bustle or due to your absent-mindedness, the phone can be lost even at home, no matter how comical it may sound. In this case, a program that allows you to make a call to yourself via the Internet will help. The phone will ring for several minutes, even if it is set to silent mode. So it will be much easier to find it, you just have to walk through the rooms and hear where the ringtone is playing.

Sending SMS to a lost or stolen smartphone

If you can't find your lost Android phone through Google, you can send a message to it with a request to return it for a reward. It's hard to believe, but even now there are honest and responsible people, so it is worth hoping that after that people who have found the phone can contact you and agree to return it.

Lost Android app is an effective assistant when you lose your phone

If, figuring out how to find a lost Android phone via the Internet, you still could not achieve results, then you should try one of the most popular and functional applications - Lost Android. After installing and first getting into the application interface, you need to give it administrator rights. Without this, you will not have access to blocking the device and deleting information from its memory. Using the application, you can remotely turn on the sound on a stolen phone and see its current GPS coordinates. If GPS is disabled, you can activate it. You can also access the information stored in it and copy it to your computer to restore important contacts and photos, even if you can't return the device. The application is able to send notifications when changing the SIM card and send notifications with a request to return the device.

Even more interesting: