How to Recover a Stolen Cell Phone

Cell phones today are inexpensive. Yet having a cell phone stolen can be a major inconvenience. People rely on their cell phones for work and appointments and to keep in close contact with family members. For an increasing number of people who conduct a large portion of their business through their cell phones, it can also mean a significant financial loss. Yet every year, many people lose their cell phones through theft. Cell phones are small and stealing them is easy and profitable for a thief. How can an individual recover her cell phone?

Instructions

Contacting the Authorities

1. Report the theft to the police department of the community where the theft occurred.

2. Report the theft to the cell phone provider. They will cancel the phone's number.

3. If the device is being used with a new SIM card, insist that the provider find out what account is using your phone and ask a judge for an order to disclose this.

4. If the provider refuses to try to trace the stolen phone, publicize the cell phone company's refusal to track the cell's IMEI number. (Cell phone providers actually make money when customers must replace stolen cell phones while the thief continues to use, and pay for, the old one.)

5. Threaten the cell phone provider with a suit for liability or condoning theft.

6. If the cell phone is important and switching numbers would cause significant distress or financial loss, try ringing the number in the first hours after the theft and offering a reward to the thief for "finding" the "lost" cell phone.

Tips & Warnings

• Cell phone owners can install software onto their cell phones upon purchase. But if the cell phone is stolen, it can be tracked whenever connected to a computer or the Internet. In addition, if an unauthorized SIM card is put into the phone an SMS alert will be sent and it can be tracked through GPS.

References

• Recovering the Device
• Thieves

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• software