How to find a lost Android phone

Lost at home: ring it, even on silent

A phone on silent under a cushion is the most common case. Both of these methods ring at full volume regardless of the silent switch.

1. 1

   Open Google Find My Device on any browser

   Go to google.com/android/find, sign in with the Google account used on the phone, and choose Play sound. The phone rings at full volume for several minutes, even if it is set to silent or vibrate. It must be switched on and connected to Wi-Fi or mobile data.

2. 2

   Or ring it with Alert24 Remote Access

   If Remote Access was switched on in Alert24, sign in at alert24.in with the same Google account, pick the phone, and tap Find My Device. The phone plays its alarm at maximum volume, on silent too, until you enter your Alert24 PIN on it. Details are on the Find my phone feature page.

3. 3

   Walk and listen

   Ring once, then walk slowly through each room. Check pockets of clothes you wore today, the car, bags, between sofa cushions and under the bed. Ring again from each room.

Lost outside: last location and address

When the phone is not in the house, the map matters more than the ring.

1. 1

   Check the map in Google Find My Device

   The page shows the phone's current location if it is online, or the last known location and the time it was seen. Zoom in and compare it to places you visited: a café, a bus, a friend's home.

2. 2

   Ask Alert24 for a fresh location

   In Remote Access, open Location History and send a locate request. The phone answers with its position, a street address and the time. Earlier entries in the list come from intruder photos, each with the address where it was taken. Tap an entry to open it in Google Maps.

3. 3

   Call the place

   If the location matches a shop, restaurant or transport company, phone them. Many lost phones are handed in within the hour. Give them a way to contact you that is not the lost phone.

4. 4

   Lock it while you search

   In Find My Device, choose Secure device to lock the screen and show a message with a contact number. In Alert24, Mark My Phone Lost makes the phone take a front-camera photo every time someone unlocks it.

Using Alert24 from a friend's phone or a browser

You do not need your own phone to use Remote Access. Any of these will do.

1. 1

   From a browser

   Open alert24.in on a computer or a borrowed phone and sign in with the Google account you used in the Alert24 app. You will see your phone in a device list with its last-seen time and whether Remote Access is on.

2. 2

   From Alert24 on another Android phone

   Install Alert24 on the borrowed phone, sign in with the same Google account, and open Remote Access from the menu. The same commands are available: Take Picture, Find My Device, Location History and Device Lost.

3. 3

   Send a command and wait

   Each command is picked up when the phone is online. If nothing happens for a minute or so, the phone is probably offline or the app has been stopped. Try again later; phones often reconnect briefly.

Prevent the next time: set it up before you need it

Five minutes now saves a bad afternoon later.

• Check Google Find My Device can see your phone at google.com/android/find.
• Install Alert24, set your PIN and switch on Remote Access from the home screen. It asks for location "all the time" and camera, and for a Google sign-in. See Remote Access.
• Add a backup number under Access via Phone so the number is linked to your account.
• Write down your IMEI (dial *#06#) and keep it somewhere that is not the phone.
• Arm the motion alarm when you put the phone down in public and the pickpocket alarm on transport. A phone that screams rarely gets lost quietly.