As you are primarily aware that there are many ways that you can lose your iPhone, whether that is on the train, taxi bus, restaurant, and as a result, what guarantees do you have that when someone finds it and reports the incident in the office? Well, you don’t.
If a thief uses a third-party tool, they can unlock your iPhone. However, if a thief is successful in this attempt and further tries to reset the device, they will fail if your apple ID is associated with the device.
The moment you find out that your iPhone has been lost or stolen, it is time to go to icloud.com directly and then report this as lost or stolen, which will then ensure that the iPhone is locked down and unusable (even if they are able to use the device).
Can someone use a stolen phone?
It is well known that thieves are always trying different methods in trying to access user data for a variety of different reasons when a device is lost or stolen. So, what are the ways in which they do this and how can one protect themselves to fight off the thieves and hackers, stay tuned!
According to this case study, a group of thieves located in Brazil was able to access iPhone 5 to iPhone 11 using a third-party tool to access user data. One of the thieves reported that they were even able to bypass iCloud security which could be worrying for many.
Importance of maintaining your security
There are a few ways of locating your iPhone if you’re in a situation where it is lost or stolen. Your number one priority, for now, is to protect yourself from all vulnerabilities stored on your iOS device, i.e. your digital footprint.
To secure yourself as soon as possible you’ll first need to reset all the email passwords that are associated with your phone that the thief could potentially access. This could also include banking apps, hidden notes, travel information, etc.
These are all important information that the user can access, you’d rather change the password to have a piece of mind and then lock down the phone.
Process of locking down the iPhone when Lost or Stolen
Ensuring that you have a process to follow when such horrific events happen is crucial to lock down your device and secure it as soon as possible.
Locating Your iPhone
Locating your phone is relatively easy if the iPhone has been turned on. It is recommended that you do a search on iCloud as soon as you know your iPhone is lost or stolen.
The first step is to navigate to icloud.com/find. Alternatively, you could use find my app on any other Apple device that you own.
- Open the find my iPhone on a web browser and choose the device that is lost or stolen
- Scroll down until you see Mark as Lost or Lost mode and select activate
- Once you follow the steps you can create a custom message detailing your contact information.
- Select Activate
Sometimes it is difficult locating your device when it is offline, to secure your device more actively follow the below procedure:
- Change your Apple ID from another device or iCloud itself
- Change all email information that is associated with your device
- Contact the police to mention that your device is lost or stolen
- Contact your phone provider so that they are able to temporiality prevent calls, texts and data.
- The last step is to move the device from the trusted location folder via appleid.apple.com.
What happens when I enable lost mode on iPhone
With technology we tend to just click a bunch of buttons and not exactly know what we do. We might be in a situaiion that we enable lost mode and if we do get the iPhone back what would we be the rollback plan, have I messed it up completely?
when you activate or enable the device as lost it will remotely lock your iPhone with a passcode and ensure that your information and data are safe.
This doesn’t mean that the thief or the person who finds your iPhone would not be able to unlock it using a third-party tool, it is just a procedure that Apple has put into place to keep their customers safe. The process when an iPhone has been lost or stolen should be followed as discussed earlier to prevent any issues in the future.
Wrapping Up
It is very well known that sometimes an iPhone can be hacked using a third-party tool and someone can actually use the device if the correct procedure has not been followed thoroughly. To avoid this, you should immediately remote lock your iPhone via iCloud and display a custom message to the person who has the device to return it back immediately. You should also contact your local police and cell provider to prevent any calls, texts, and data access.
