Stole the phone - what to do? How to track a phone?

With many of us, there was a situation in which either we, or someone from friends stole a mobile phone. This, unfortunately, happens - small thieves and scammers continue to hunt gadgets in public places. There are several explanations for this.

Why are they stealing?

Of course, cell phones are stolen in order to sell. And from this we understand that, firstly, the prices for modern cellular phones are quite high (on average the device costs 10-15 thousand rubles, if it's not the iPhone, but not the old "button" model). In the event that an expensive phone is stolen (the same iPhone), the price for a used gadget can reach 20-25 thousand.

Secondly, today the mobile phone has become so familiar in everyday life of each of us that any passer-by, in fact, has at least one mobile phone with him. In the capital and large cities, especially in the central part, you can meet people who wear and two mobile. Imagine the temptation of thieves.

Protect yourself

Wherever you are and how many phones you have, try to protect yourself as much as possible from such cases. Agree, even if you stole a cell phone that is not of great value - the very fact of loss and loss of personal data is unpleasant. Perhaps someone stored on his smartphone valuable photos or correspondence, or something else that should not get to other people. The feeling that such information can be accessible to someone else's, very unpleasant.

Therefore, when you are in public places, try to feel your device. For example, put it in the inner pocket or at the very bottom of the bag, cover it with something. In an extreme case, if you have nowhere to put a mobile - carry it in your hand - chances that you will take it less than the probability that it will be pulled out "quietly."

However, we understand that it is one thing to give well-known advice, and quite another to get into a difficult life situation when in practice the phone was stolen. What to do in this case, read on.

Lock the device

First of all, you need to lock your device. It should be done as soon as possible, preferably - immediately after detection of the loss. However, for this you need a secret 15-digit code, also known as IMEI. This number represents the identifier with which your device is marked. It is at all without an exception of mobile phones, and to find it very simply. You can see in the box that you received with the device, and also you can type * 06 #. Advice for the future - put the phone number in a place where you can find it at any time. For example, in a purse. If you are afraid that it will be pulled along with the mobile - store IMEI somewhere on the mailbox, which you always have access to.

Next, you need to contact the operator so that your phone is stolen. What more specifically, we have already clarified above - you should lock the device, make it useless for the criminal. To do this, you will need the IMEI code. Your mobile provider can send a lock signal even when the phone is switched off.

Contact the police

Suppose that we managed to disable the device. Obviously, the second task is how to track the phone; Find out where he is and with whom. Only law enforcement agencies can cope with this problem. That's where you need to go as soon as possible. The duty officer of the local police station must accept your statement of loss, to which you need to attach a check on the payment of the phone in the store and a box with all the documents. Here is one more argument in favor of storing such things.

After receiving a report of the theft, the police must transfer the information to the special department "K", dealing with such cases. Specialists from there make inquiries to the mobile operator and record where the phone is located. At the address of the operative group.

The search for criminals

On the question of what to do if they stole the phone, can we find it, we answered. Immediately you need to contact the operator and the police. Theoretically, of course, it is possible to find; But whether they do it or not depends on a lot of circumstances.

It's clear that thieves are not fools and, most likely, think of removing the card immediately, so that they can not be tracked by the operator. In addition, if the attackers have some experience, they know how to track the phone. Accordingly, they will do everything to prevent this. Whether it will be possible for the police to get ahead of them depends, in part, on how quickly you act.

Tracking software

On some cell phones prices are quite high (for example, new flagship models like the Samsung Galaxy S6 or Apple iPhone 6 cost 40 thousand each). In this regard, people resort to alternative ways to protect smartphones. Option can be the installation of special programs for tracking.

The meaning of their work is that an application is installed on the device, which is protected by a password from deletion. It maintains communication with the online server from which it can be commanded. For example, if a user stole a phone, he can activate the front camera and take a picture from the device. The face of the thief will be visible on it. There are a lot of such stories in the network when a person who has stolen a phone continues to use it and does not suspect that all this time the former owner follows him through a black front camera. For criminals such stories, of course, do not end in the best way.

The same options are available with geolocation (for example, determining the location of the device), displaying an information message on the screen (something like "Return my phone for a reward") and so on.

ICloud from Apple solution

In parallel with these applications, you can also mention the iCloud service available on iOS devices. The meaning of it is that each user of the iPhone and iPad will have their own account in the system. You can access it using the Apple ID (login) and password. Among the functions of iCloud is the ability to lock the mobile phone or tablet, and also include the location of it on the map ("Find my iPhone").

Experienced thieves, of course, know how to bypass the operation of this function, and how to hide from any service. Nevertheless, if newcomers have stolen a phone - what to do, you know. Finding these using these technologies is not difficult.

If nothing has helped

Of course, there are a lot of methods aimed at finding a stolen mobile device. It all depends on your situation - how quickly you reacted to the loss, how experienced and cunning the thieves got to you.

Even if nothing has helped, and the phone could not be found - do not be discouraged. Sometimes the police will not be able to say that they stole a phone for their faces.

What should the owner do in this situation? To show your own ingenuity! A common practice is to search for mobile phones, tablets, computers and other equipment on message boards. Fortunately, today the Internet technologies are quite developed. How does the attacker sell your gadget? Most likely - on the largest portals, like "Avito" or "From hand to hand". Register there and look for similar models. If some of the signs (scratches, dents on the body, etc.) coincide - appoint a meeting and check those same IMEI numbers, ask for the box from the thing and so on. Act - and, believe me, fortune can smile at you.