How to Easily Track a Stolen Phone (Android and iOS)

There are several ways to track or trace the location of a stolen or missing mobile phone. The essence of learning this skill is to locate your phone, especially now that mobile phone theft is rampant.

With recent advancements in technology, mobile devices (both Android and iOS) are now programmed with built-in location tracking utilities that utilize active GPS location tracking services.

Note that GPS location tracking only functions when it is enabled and permission is granted.

Is it Possible to Track a Phone by Number?

The answer to this question is: NO. It is practically impossible to track a mobile phone through its number, as claimed by scammers who develop fake mobile number location tracker applications to lure unsuspecting victims.

The only feasible method to trace a phone is by installing tracking software on the device. For this to be effective, the phone owner must turn on or grant permissions on the device.

How to Track an Android Mobile Phone Using "Google Find My Phone"

After clicking on the “Find My Device” feature, a dropdown list of devices you have previously used to access your Google account will display. Now, select the device you want to track and follow the instructions below:

NOTE: It is impossible to track a mobile device if you haven’t enabled "Google Find My Device" using the Google account on that phone.

• Check recent security events: This option displays previous activities on your Google account, such as password changes or reset requests.
• Lock your phone: This option allows you to lock your phone if it is stolen, preventing unauthorized access.
• Try calling your phone: You can access your contacts list here to retrieve your phone number or use a Google Hangouts session to call your number.
• Sign out of Google: One click logs you out of your Google account on the stolen/missing device, preventing unauthorized access.
• Reach out to your carrier: Contact your phone carrier to disable your old SIM card and request a new one.
• Erase your phone: This option functions like a factory reset and erases everything on your phone, including linked external drives. Use this option with caution.

Only use this option if you have no hope of retrieving your phone, as it will erase everything, including your Google account, making it impossible to track your device using Google services.

To quickly locate your mobile device, click the Locate link in the corner of the page. The Call button allows you to call whoever has your phone.

How to Track an Android Device Using Device Manager

If "Google Find My Device" doesn’t work, you can use Device Manager to track your Android mobile phone. To use this service, you must have location services enabled on your missing/stolen device.

Visit the Android Device Manager’s "FIND MY DEVICE" page to get the location of your phone. You will see the precise GPS location of your phone identified by a green dot/icon on Google Maps.

There are three horizontal lines at the top left corner containing important options explained below:

• Play a sound: This will cause your phone to ring for five minutes, even if it was on silent.
• Lock: This option locks your phone to prevent unauthorized usage and access to personal information.
• Erase: This option erases all information on your stolen device.

For those who don’t know how to enable location on their Android devices, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings.
2. Click Security & Location.
3. Then Click On Location.
4. Visit FIND MY DEVICE in the same menu to enable tracking.

With these steps, you can track your stolen/missing Android device using any of the methods explained above.

How to Track an iPhone Through Apple's "Find My iPhone"

Tracking an iPhone is different from tracking an Android device. To track an iPhone, visit “Apple Find My Device”.

To find your iPhone location without server return errors, log in to Chrome, tap the three horizontal dots at the top right corner of the browser, and select “Use Desktop Mode”.

Once desktop mode is activated, you can sign in to your iCloud Account, where you will see a display of your iPhone.

Failure to activate Desktop Mode may lead to an error stating “Web Browser isn’t supported”.

NOTE: Just like with tracking an Android device, you must enable location for your iPhone before tracking is possible. iCloud can be accessed with either a PC or another iPhone device.

How to Locate a Mobile Phone Through Facebook

Many people may not realize that a lost or stolen phone can be tracked through FACEBOOK.

Tracking a mobile device through Facebook is simple and can be done with either an Android device or an iPhone. Follow these steps to trace your mobile phone if it goes missing:

1. Login to Facebook using a friend’s account.
2. Scroll down and click on Nearby Friends.
3. After clicking Nearby Friends, a list of friends who enabled “Share my location” will display, including you if you did that before your phone went missing.

You can find and locate your device if the person in possession of your mobile device is connected to a network.

Another way to track your phone through Facebook is by using the MESSENGER APP. Facebook allows users to share their live location in the messenger app. If your friends have shared their location in messenger, it will be easy to locate them using the following steps:

1. Login to Messenger using a friend’s account.
2. Look through your conversations to find any friend that previously shared their location.
3. Click on the shared location in the chat; it will open in Google Maps.

Note that you can only locate someone using Facebook if they share their location, either using the messenger app or Facebook’s Nearby Friends feature.

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