4 ways to track your lost Android phone

Android phone lost? Just don’t panic. Here is the key, thank us later

Smartphones have become a part and parcel of our lives, or maybe even more. Over the past decade various features and functions have immensely fostered the smartphone industry; so, has its usage and users. Confining almost all our requirements into this handy device, seldom do we find people keep their phones down. Yet the human nature of forgetfulness rolls in.

Android phone lost

Losing your smartphone is one of the most frightening experiences in the modern age. You have your contact information, personal information, personal pictures, and possibly even financial data on there. It’s a treasure trove for the wrong hands. Having installed all those security apps and features in the market doesn’t keep us from the intimidate thoughts of losing our material partner.

Foreseeing such mishaps, techies have made things easy in helping you find your lost device. We can’t stress enough that the best method of protection is prevention. Having a system in place really helps this situation. However, there are some ways that you can find it even without preventative measures. Here are a few ways to assist you to track down your phone.

Way 1: Google find my device

Logging in with your google account onto your android devices is not just about syncing your contacts and data. These tech giants have more to offer. But yes, with quite a few terms and conditions, of course.

Google has come up with this amazing feature of not just tracking your android device with pinpoint accuracy but also with some functions you can perform remotely.

All you need to do is:

• Go to https://www.google.com/android/find in your browser.
• Enter the email address and password for the Android that you want to find.
• Click your phone’s name on the left side of the page. This will prompt Find My Device to begin searching for your Android’s location.
• Once your Android’s location is determined, it will display on-screen.
• If you want to prevent your Android’s data from being recovered, you can lock it down by doing the following:
• Click LOCK on the left side of the page.
• Enter a password if prompted.
• Enter a message and a recovery phone number if you like.
• Click LOCK when prompted.

You can ring a tone, secure your device or even erase the data on it. But, all this is possible only if your device has an internet access and the location turned on. And certainly, both these are the basic requirements for most of the apps today, so hopefully your device is just waiting for your click of the button!

Way 2: IMEI Tracking

Ever since we’ve heard the words mobile phones and sim cards, the term IMEI has also been in the air. We hardly ever think of the IMEI or its purpose. But guess what, this way old system is a nightmare for the malcontents who plan to use a stolen GSM device.

The IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) is a unique 15-digit code authorized by GSMA, just like an identity certificate for your phone. Every time a phone uses a network to make or receive a call, send or receive a message, its IMEI number is automatically emitted and tracked. Because the police and service providers have databases in which these ID numbers fall into white and black lists, an owner can report his/her IMEI number and make it blacklisted after a theft.

Getting to know the number is easy. The fastest way is to dial *#06#, a command to make the unique ID appear.

Another easy way to find the IMEI number is to navigate through “Settings” and tap “About Phone” to check the IMEI code of your Android phone.

Thusly, keep a record of the IMEI numbers of your devices, which may come handy in case losing your phone or being robbed.

Way 3: Apps in play store

Play store has an app for anything and everything you need. Same is the case in phone tracking apps.

There are over a hundred of apps that is designed to trace the device and let the user know the location by means of email, web clients and even location details sent to an alternate contact number.

But these again require location and internet access. More or less like the proprietary feature from google.

You can search at: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=lost+phone&c=apps

Way 4: Tracking a phone that is switched off

Losing your device and battery draining out is a common scenario these days. With the phone switched off, none of the apps will help you track your device. Even if not a pinpoint accurate method, Google’s location history feature tells you the last location while your device was still powered ON.

This feature might prove valuable in case you have just forgotten your device and it is still lying there or even to find the places the phone was to after being stolen.

Here’s what you need to do. Go to the Your Timeline (former Google Maps Location History) and make sure the current day is selected in the calendar. On the left sidebar, you can see a complete timeline of that day including the names all recorded locations. On the right, you can see all the locations visualized on a map.

Other than Find My Device, which also uses GPS for tracking, Your Timeline only uses cell tower IDs and Wi-Fi location detection to collect location data. This means that the accuracy can vary significantly. The advantage of Timeline is the ability to track your phone’s location frequently over a period of time. So even if someone stole it, you could identify often visited places, which could be the thief’s home or workplace. That might help you and the authorities to catch the person.

Conclusion

Today, there are websites in plenty which offer such technical assistances, acting as a huge relief in such occasions. NetSpy is one of such endeavours. No matter whatever the concern is, NetSpy has a solution for your android; and finding it while it goes missing is definitely one of the hacks.

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