THINGS TO BE REMEMBERED IF YOUR MOBILE PHONE IS LOST

Rishad Azeez -


We all would have lost our mobile phones at some point. Nowadays, it is only a natural incident. In the hectic life schedules, the possibilities to lose our Smartphones are too high. So, in such a situation, control yourself, and it is important to not to panic at that time. Think wisely, and immediately take relevant steps to maintain your data in the mobile phone secured, because a Smartphone is the sole device which can store the majority of your personal data. If it is lost once, confirm that such an unfortunate thing will not occur in your life again. Here, we have shared some valuable tips that assist you to act immediately if your Smartphone is lost.

Try to connect with your number

The first thing you need to do immediately after knowing that you have lost your Smartphone is to call your number from other available phones. If your phone is not in silent mode, and if you could still hear the ringtone, then you can assume that it is at your arms reach. So, you can find it out without much effort. But if somebody could pick up the phone after it fell down from your pouch or pocket, they could respond to your call immediately. If it rings and somebody answers your call, you can make sure that your Smartphone is safe. On the other hand, if you didn’t get any response to your call, or if your number is off, then it is time to act vigilantly and call for a big help.

Make your phone to generate a sound

You can also use certain tools called Find My Device (Android) or Find My iPhone and make your lost phone to generate a sound. This is a suitable option, if you do not possess another smart device to call or text with.

Try to lock down your phone

It is always advised for Android as well as iOS users to lock their phones with fingerprint, face-recognition lock, voice-recognition lock, patterns, passwords, etc. You may also use these facilities to lock your iPhone remotely so that no one can collect your personal details. The instant you find out that your mobile phone is with someone else, the priority should be to make sure that the person won’t be able to access the contents of your lost mobile phone. To bring forth this, you can lock down your phone remotely. The exact process regarding this is dependent with respect to your operating system.

Use GPS to track your phone

If calling is not successful, try to locate the lost phone using the GPS system. For this purpose, you can rely on another similar device. This is absolutely a precarious move. However, if you have not turned on the GPS system of your lost phone from the beginning itself, this technique won’t be able to work out. Your Android devices are available with an inbuilt location tracking system that follows the activities you carry out with your mobile phone. It is possible for you to log in to your Google account from another similar device and move to Google Location History, for tracking the current location of your lost Smartphone.  For this requirement you can also seek the help of certain Android tools known as Find My Device for Android, Find My iPhone etc, and try to check the recent location of your lost Smartphone. If you believe that your device is stolen, then moving to the location shown by the GPS tracking system could be dangerous. Instead, it is better to report to the police authorities of that locality and request them to do the needful. But if it is just a natural loss, tracking the Smartphone via GPS might help you understand the misplaced site of your lost device.

Inform your service provider

When you find out that your phone is not receiving any calls from you, the next significant step is to inform your service provider regarding the missing of your device. You can request them to suspend your SIM card, and block the service offered to you. By doing so, the person who has taken your phone won’t be able to use it further, and thus you can prevent the misuse of your phone number. Since mobile wallets are linked to phone number, the person who has stolen your Smartphone can even steal from your bank account. So, to suspend your SIM card is absolutely very important.

Erase your device

When you come to know that there are no possibilities to get your lost phone back, then the next step is to remotely delete all the information stored in your phone. By doing so, you can make sure that the person who has taken your phone can’t access any of your personal details. This is an extremely decisive step, since all of us will have an infinite number of details stored on our phones which we don’t want to access by others.

Report to the Cops

If you are sure that your phone has been stolen and not simply misplaced, then the next ideal step is to file a complaint to the cops as early as possible. Even though this step won’t generate any kind of positive result regarding the missing of your phone, the same won’t trouble you in any way. You can at least use the reference number of your complaint while claiming your insurance. So, it will be good if you can make your local police authorities know that your Smartphone has been missing.

If your Smartphone is lost, it is highly important to stop your all social network accounts as well, because the person who has stolen the mobile phone can easily access your social media accounts and make others believe that he is you. If he wants, he can access your WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and other networks, and text your acquaintances as you usually do. To prevent this, it is better to change your passwords from all of those accounts, including Google and other emails you have. Sometimes, mere changing passwords from social media accounts may not be sufficient. If so, it is better to unlink all your active accounts manually as early as possible. Unlinking your cloud storage like Google Drive, Dropbox etc, can also prevent the process of syncing, and make your accounts absolutely safe. You can carry out this unlinking process using other mobile devices or from your desktop by moving to the security page of your accounts and eliminating your lost device from the existing list.

Suppose, the following two links can give you adequate support if your mobile phone is lost. So, you may remember to click these links whenever required.

https://www.google.com/android/find
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205362

If your mobile phone is lost, never panic. Make up your mind and be vigilant. Bear the aforesaid matters in mind and do your best to retrieve it. Thus, you can at least confirm that you have done all possible things to make it safe and get it back. You may also ascertain that such an unfortunate incident won’t happen in your life once again.