Mobile phones have become a part of our lives. Without them, it would be difficult for us to travel, shop, socialize, etc. Losing a mobile phone seems to be a very low probability thing, but if it does happen, it will be a nightmare for us.
Therefore, it is always good to learn some technical methods for retrieving lost phones in advance to prepare for emergencies. This article will tell you three online platforms that can help us retrieve lost phones, namely: "iCloud Find Devices" for iPhone users, "Find My Device" for Android users, and "Phone Finder" for all phone brands.
I. "iCloud Find Devices" for iPhone
i. Required conditions of the lost iPhone:
- Power on
- Stable Wi-Fi or mobile internet connection
- Logged into iCloud account
- Location acquisition is turned on
- Find My service has been activated
ii. Steps to use iCloud Find Devices:
1. Open the browser on your iPad or computer, enter "www.icloud.com/find" in the link search bar to come to the official website
2. After entering the page, use your iCloud account to log in (you do not need to enter the verification code when logging in to iCloud.com/find)
3. Inside the account, you will see an Apple devices list on the left and the online map on the right
4. Select your lost iPhone in the left list. If the system can locate your device, the map will automatically zoom in to display its current location, and you can search it according to the location. At the same time, you can use "Play Sound" or "Erase This Device" to help you better determine the location of your phone or directly erase your phone data
5. If the location displayed on the map is far away and cannot be retrieved for a while, please select "Mark As Lost" and the device will enter "Lost Mode". In this mode, the device is locked with a passcode. Payment cards and credentials used with Apple Pay are suspended as well, keeping your personal information and property safe
6. In "Lost Mode", you can follow the on-screen instructions to leave your phone number and message and present them on the lock screen of the lost phone, helping those who find your phone make contact with you. Then, click the "Activate" button to enter Lost Mode
7. Lost Mode, and the system will ask you to use your existing password to lock or unlock your iPhone. If you do not set a password, the system will ask you to create one
II. "Find My Device" for Android
i. Required conditions of the lost Android phone:
- Power on
- Stable Wi-Fi or mobile internet connection
- Logged into Google account
- Location acquisition is turned on
- Find My Device service has been activated
ii. Steps to use Find My Device:
1. Open a browser on your computer to search "Google's Find My Device web page"
2. After entering the web interface, log in to your Google account
3. Inside the account, you will see a map interface on the right side, and a series of devices with the Find My Device function activated under your Google account on the left side. Select and click on your lost phone, wait a few seconds, and its location will be displayed on the map
4. At the same time, Find My Device also provides functions such as "Play Sound", "Secure Device", and "Erase Device" to help you better identify the specific location of your phone, remotely lock your phone, or completely erase your phone data to avoid privacy leakage
Please note:
Although the above two methods are officially recommended, they are all based on GPS and mobile data. That's to say, if the mobile phone is lost indoors, in the basement, or on a high floor, where the signal is relatively weak, or it is turned off, then the positioning effect will be greatly impaired. To solve these kinds of problems, many third-party location services come up.
III. "Phone Finder" For All Phone Brands
Phone Finder is an online platform that specializes in tracking lost mobile phone. It uses four modern positioning technologies such as Cell-tower-based Track, GPS-based Track, AGPS-based Track, and WLAN-based Track, allowing users to obtain the accurate location report of a mobile phone with just one phone number. The location details will be presented to the user through a simple and easy-to-understand interface.
i. Features of Phone Finder:
- No need to download any App in advance
- No complicated activation or authorization process
- No network restrictions
- Locate turned-off mobile phones
- Locate mobile phones of any operator and any brand
ii. Steps to use Phone Finder:
1. Enter "www.gps-phone.net/phone-finder" in the link search box of the browser to go to the homepage of Phone Finder
2. Filling in the phone number of the lost mobile phone and click the "Locate" button
3. The system will immediately find the location of the lost phone for you
4. After successful tracking, provide your personal email and complete the payment
5. Then you can get into your account interface and see the specific location of the lost phone on a map
Please note:
All third-party location services on the market will charge you certain service fees, Phone Finder is the same. But it has a trial period and can help you find your lost phone for less than a dollar. If you need to find a lost phone, I strongly recommend this platform to you since I've personally used it and helped my grandma get her lost Samsung phone back during the trial period.
IV. Frequently Asked Questions:
i. Can I track an iPhone from my Android phone?
Sure! Take Phone Finder as an example, you can use this tool to track mobile phones of any brand or system since it only requires you to provide the cell phone number of the target phone.
ii. How can I track someone's location without them knowing?
GPS Locator allows users to track someone's real-time location by sending an anonymous location request message, which means the target person will never know who is trying to track him/her.
iii. How do I know whether I'm being tracked by others?
In general, if you recently received messages from unknown numbers asking you for location sharing, you may become the target of someone who would like to monitor your daily activity. Besides, If you find that arrows or navigation icons often appear at the top of your phone screen, but you are not using any location services, you may be tracked by someone else through your phone.
