How to remotely track, locate, lock or erase your lost Android smartphone
How to remotely track, locate, lock or erase your lost Android smartphone or tablet with Google Account (Google Maps)?
Your smartphone or tablet got lost or was stolen by a sketchy thief? It may be a Huawei P30 (Pro), OnePlus 7 (Pro), Samsung Galaxy A80, or Xiaomi Mi 9. I’m sorry to hear that. But please calm down, as there are many ways you can try to track, locate and even find your lost phone before it’s too late, among which Google Account is the best known one. Google Account offers “Find My Device” service for users to track and lock their lost smartphones, or remotely erase the data of their stolen smartphones. Now, I’m going to tell you how to use Google Account (Google Maps) to track your lost smartphone.
Under what conditions can the Google Account help find your lost smartphone or tablet?
Not all lost smartphones can be found via Google Account. It must meet the following conditions:
● Your lost smartphone must have registered or logged in a Google Account.
● Your lost smartphone must be turned on.
● Your lost smartphone must have an internet connection.
● The location feature on your lost smartphone must be turned on.
● The “Find My Device” feature on your lost smartphone must be turned on.
How to use Google’s “Find My Device” service on a computer?
Step 1. Open “Find My Device” website on your computer.
Step 2. log into using your Google Account username and password. If you have added several Android phones to the Google Account, you should choose the device you lost from the list.
Step 3. Allow the pop-up location services and accept the warnings.
Step 4. Then the Google Maps will show you the location of your lost phone. One thing to note is that it’s just a general instead of a 100% accurate location. Even your phone cannot be found, it will also show you the last location of your lost phone.
Step 5. Google will offer you three options to do something with your lost smartphone.
● Play sound: If you choose the “Play Sound”, your smartphone will ring for 5 minutes at a full volume, even if it was set to be silent or vibrate modes. This method is the most effective when you make sure that the lost smartphone is near you.
● Lock: You can also remotely lock your lost or stolen phone with your PIN, pattern or password. However, if you didn’t set one, you can set it on “Find My Device”. Meanwhile, you can display a phone number or a message on the locked phone’s screen to remind the people who found or stolen your phone to return it to you.
● Erase: The “Erase” function on “Find My Device” enables you to permanently erase all data on your lost smartphones. However, it may not clean the data on the SD cards. The “Erase” function can avoid your personal data leakage. However, once you perform this operation, the “Find My Device” function won’t work on the device.
How to use Google’s “Find My Device” service on APP?
Google also offers a special “Find My Device” APP for Android smartphone users. To enable the APP service, simply follow the steps below:
Step 1. Download and install the “Find My Device” APP from the Google Play.
Step 2. Find the “Find My Device” APP on your home screen and open it.
Step 3. Select the Google account that you want to use.
Step 4. Choose “Continue”.
Step 5. log into your Google Account.
● If you have more than one device linked to Google Account, you can choose the device you lost.
● If your lost device has more than one user profile, you can log into the Google Account with the main profile.
Step 6. Allow the location function.
Step 7. Continue the Step 4 and Step 5 mentioned above.
In addition to the Google Account, you can also use the IMEI number to track your lost or stolen smartphones.
Did this article help you? If so, please tell me in a comment what do you think about it.
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