Getting a new phone is full of happiness. But what if it gets stolen? The thought itself might haunt you, and getting your phone stolen can become one of your worst nightmares. Mobile phones are our friends today; we share our data, interact with them, and check them out when we are bored. But the sad part of it is that millions of phones are stolen each year, and there is a big chance for you to be in this category.
Unfortunately, mobile phone theft is still a reality that we face every day. The “little gadgets” that are too expensive and that sometimes we do not protect enough (or we forget about it), are becoming a juicy target for thieves.
Recently, the journalist and candidate for mayor of Luis Otero became the victim of a motorcycle attack. When he arrived at his studio, a criminal on top of a motorcycle that was circulating on the sidewalk snatched his cell phone and fled before the astonished look of a witness and the reaction of the journalist who managed to run him.
If your mobile has just been stolen, recovering it will be difficult in many cases. So, our main interest will be to prevent access to our personal data within it. You cannot make your phone theftproof, but you can always protect your data on your phone.
A stolen phone might leave you helpless or unhappy. You might scramble once your phone gets stolen, but you can always prepare for these situations. For those cases, there are recommended steps to follow immediately after the assault, to avoid using—next, to avoid using the device and the line. Next, the details of how to act in this situation.
Table of Contents
Some Quick Tips to Recover Your Phone
1. Send a text
If you think you left your phone in a public area, send a text message on your phone and provide the return information to the users. If your texts are set to appear on your home screen, it makes it easy for the good Samaritan to return it to you.
2. Use Find my Phone
Find my Phone is an amazing feature that is available on both Android and iOS. This helps you locate your device from a web portal and remotely wipe and lock it. You can also review your call logs and ring your device for 1 min at max volume. Whenever you are setting up your new phone, make sure to activate this feature as it helps you in locating your device if it is stolen.
There are also some third-party apps like Prey, Cerberus, and Lookout that can help you track the GPS location of your device and set up an alarm. This means you always have the option to find your mobile phone once it is stolen.
3. Inform Your loved ones
Inform the friends and family members in your contacts about this unfortunate event of your life and tell them not to contact you on your number. You should also tell them to ignore suspicious calls and messages from your number.
In certain cases, the thief might try to ask for money and use their identity to get benefits. This can be dangerous as your position in society might get damaged from this incident. Once your phone is stolen, just update your contacts and save yourself from extra trouble.
What’s Next if You Cannot Find your Phone
1. Cancel Your Passwords and Logins
Securing your passwords and removing all your logins is important. Your data is at stake, and you do not want any infringement on it. The speed with which you are going to do it depends on how often you use your mobile phone. Moreover, you may also want to disassociate all the credit/debit cards that are registered with it to any online store.
If you are worried that someone else is using your mobile phone, then the sooner you remove this information, the better it is. Identity theft is serious and widespread, and we do not want you to become a victim of one.
Start with the most important passwords like your email, bank accounts, Facebook, and online storage. Our suggestion is to deal with financial and personal information first and change major passwords. Then move onwards to less important things and secure your data.
2. Inform the Police
With innovation in technology, the cybercrime of police can track your phone and get the culprit arrested. You do not feel shame in calling the police as your personal data is at stake. Moreover, a police record shows that you are no longer the owner of your device, and any action taken from it has no connection with you. So, make sure to inform the police in the first place.
Visit the police station because even if your mobile phone is insured, the insurance provider will often want a police report to file a claim by using a pre-paid option. Moreover, some phone companies might also want this report to deactivate your account.
3. Block the IMEI number
Are you afraid of your stolen phone being used for criminal activity? Blocking the IMEI of your mobile thing is the first thing you need to do in order to get your stolen phone deactivated from the network operator.
An IMEI or “International Mobile Equipment Identity” is the international identity code that each cell phone has and serves to distinguish it in a unique way. In other words, it is the identity fingerprint of the mobile device, like the fingerprint of a person. The IMEI number is made up of 15 digits. These 15 digits are 4 sections of your phone.
The first six digits, Type Allocation Code (TAC), explain the country in which the device was created. The next two numbers, Final Assembly Code (FAC), identify the manufacturer. It is followed by the serial number (SNR), it is a unique alphanumeric code assigned for identification. It can consist of an integer only and contain a letter. Finally, there is a check digit, although not all devices have it.
4. How to Check Your IMEI
To be able to check your IMEI, just perform the following steps:
This step works for any device, no matter if it is IOS or ANDROID. All you have an Android device, simply dial *#06# on your cell phone. A number will automatically appear on your screen; you must save it or memorize it. It is important to make it clear that each cell phone has its own number. So, wanting to use a third-party device to request the IMEI of the stolen cell phone will be useless.
The next way to know your IMEI number will be by removing the battery cover of your cell phone. You will notice that on the battery, there is a sticker with a number that will be the IMEI; take Note!
To improve your phone’s security, simply go to the settings of your phone and tap on Biometric and Security. Now scroll down to location. From this menu, tap on ‘Improve Location accuracy’ to help you accurately locate your phone.
5. Block Your Sim Card
Suppose that an imposter uses your SIM Card to make unwanted calls. He might be using your Sim card to conduct criminal activities and get you into serious trouble. Wouldn’t it be your nightmare getting worse?
Do not worry. The UK authorities have a laudable system that allows people to check the number of SIMs registered under their name. With this system, you also get the ability to block your sim if it has been stolen and get a new SIM from network providers like Talk Home Mobile.
To block your SIM, simply visit the nearest franchise and get your Sim card canceled. Or you get your sim card called at home by calling the helpline line and requesting them to cancel your SIM.
In many cases, telecom companies like Talk Home Mobile will also offer you free delivery of the duplicate sim within a few working hours. And all of this will be done without any additional charges incurred.
If you want to get your Talk Home Mobile Sim card canceled and know further information about our product and services, you can contact the Customer Services team by dialing 579 from Talk Home Mobile or +44(0)330 993 7339 from any other network.
6. Restore your Data
By now, you might have imagined that you can recover your data from your phone once it is lost. But if you are an Android or iOS user and have turned it on automatically to synchronize your data or recently created a backup of your phone, you are in safe heaven.
To activate sync and backup on Android, simply navigate to the settings of your phone and move to accounts. From this menu, select the account you want to back up on. Check on Gmail, Contacts, and Calendar and select back up my data.
By doing this, you will back up your data each time you are connected to the internet. If you want to synchronize images, videos, music, and other data, you can also set up sync to Google on your phone.
Today there are a lot of apps that can automatically back up your phone to the cloud either through Dropbox or any other cloud storage. Remember to set up these things. A few pounds can save your data. And there is no harm in saving your data from thieves.
7. Register Your Phone Online
A few online services like MissingPhone.org allow you to register your cell phone with their website. Registering your phone on these websites can help you locate your mobile phone in the future once they have been stolen or lost.
Moreover, even if you are buying a furnished phone, a friendly suggestion is to check the IMEI of your Mobile Phone on these websites. They can inform you that either the mobile phone you are planning to buy was stolen or not.
If you have AppleCare+ with theft and loss, do not dispose of the lost iPhone until the claim has been approved. Go to appleid.apple.com to remove the missing device from the list of trusted devices.
If the missing device is an iPhone or iPad with cellular data, please notify your cellular carrier. Ask your carrier to deactivate your account to prevent calls, texts, and data usage. Also, if the device is covered by a mobile carrier plan, file a claim.
What To Do About Disputed Bills on Mobile Phones?
Usually, a lot of bills are run up on stolen phones, and you will have to pay for the cost. If you are on a contract, report it to your mobile phone provider immediately.
Network providers like EE, O2 Mobile, Three Virgin Media, and Vodafone have signed up for a liability cap of 100 pounds. This means you will only pay a bill of 100 pounds for the first time your phone is lost or stolen. But this cap is only activated if you report your phone as lost or stolen within 24 hours.
This means once your phone is stolen, your priority is to report it as lost and stolen within 24 hours, or else you will have to pay for all the liabilities.
In case you have been charged for unauthorized calls, you should negotiate with the network provider and see if they will reduce the bill. Sometimes they might reduce your bill as a sign of good gestures, but legally they are not bound to do any such thing.
But your network will not replace your handset free of charge. And you will have to carry on paying your mobile monthly line rental until the end of your contract. Just keep your phone protected at all hours.
Seeking a Dispute for Your Bill
To seek a dispute for your bill, writing a letter to your service provider is essential. Your letter should include the following things:
- Your name, address, and contact number
- Your customer account or reference number
- Copies of the bill you want a dispute for
- Why are you disputing the bill? Say which charges are not right
- What has happened in your home over the billing period, for example, if you are at work all day or if any children are away at college?
- Ask them to respond to you within 14 days (about 2 weeks).
Planning to Buy a New Phone?
Now that your mobile phone has been stolen, you might be in dire to buying a new one. Of course, it is better to move on in your life and best the best smartphone for the year 2022 to make this new year the best year.
Mobile phones today are not only handset devices; they are a way through which people share their love. To get the best features on your mobile phone, you might wonder which mobile network is best for you. This is a tricky question to answer, but with Mobile Virtual Network Providers like Talk Home, do not worry.
With Talk Home Mobile, you get calling rates starting from just 1p/min, blazing fast 4G data connectivity, and much more. Explore plans from Talk Home Mobile starting from just £5 per month and enjoy unlimited data, minutes, and messages across the UK.
Moreover, with Talk Home App that is available on both Android and iOS, you get the ability to make a secure in-app transfer and are always connected with your loved ones using local lines. Talk Home App is also offering exclusive discounts on international top-ups, so don’t miss these exclusive features once you have bought your new phone.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, by taking these measures, you can protect your data from infringement. Moreover, most thieves are after the phone rather than the data. The buyer of a stolen phone will replace the SIM card and factory reset your device in order to use it. This can be easily done if you are not using a carrier-locked cell phone. But, still, it is important to be on the safe side and use these tips and tricks for your own advantage in case your phone gets stolen.
