We all know well enough how easy it is to lose a phone to petty thieves. One moment you’re unsuspectingly whipping out your beautiful piece, and the next, it is no longer in your possession. It dawns on you that you’ve fallen prey to the uncanny craft that is run by many idle youths in town.
To make matters worse, being inside of a car does not guarantee your immunity, especially if the window is rolled down. Everybody is prone to being a victim at one point in time and so to avoid further repercussions with your personal data being misused (leaked), here are a few steps to secure your phone using any other device that has a connection to the internet & how to remotely wipe your lost android device.
First off, you must turn on the Find My Device feature in your Google Settings. Do this now if you haven’t done it already – don’t wait till it’s stolen.
- Open Google Settings in the apps menu.
- Tap Android Device Manager
- Check the box next to Remotely locate this device.
- Turn on device location
- Allow Remote lock and factory reset.
Irrespective of your following the above steps to make certain that you are able to locate your lost phone, it must be:
- Turned on
- Signed in to a Google Account
- Visible on Google Play
- Having Location turned on
- Having Find My Device turned on
Now, if you, unfortunately, happen to lose your phone, follow the steps below:
- Head over to android.com/find
- Log in using the same google account as on your lost device
- The site will display the device and its location on the map if it is connected to the internet at that time.
- Click the option to Erase Device. It might ask you to sign in again.
- Confirm and your device shall be wiped clean immediately, or when it next connects to the internet.
Not to worry, if the phone isn’t connected to the internet at the time you perform the wipe, the process will still take effect as soon as it is connected to the internet.
All in all, it’s best to try and keep your phone safe from being stolen in the first place, to avoid all the trouble that results from its loss.