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If you’ve lost your phone, it’s not necessarily gone forever. But don’t wait until you lose your phone to prepare: you’ll need to configure it now to enable you to find a lost Android, iPhone or Windows phone. Here’s how to set up phone tracking and how to find your phone. 

Note that the solutions offered in this tutorial will require that your phone to be switched on in order to give you an accurate idea of its location, and to access options to remotely lock or wipe it. If your battery runs out or your phone is stolen and switched off, you may be out of luck. For that reason it’s imperative that you back up everything now, just in case you can’t get it back. Over the following pages, we’ll consider the options built into each major mobile operating system to explain how to track your lost or stolen phone. For each of these you will need to be signed into either your Google, Apple or Windows account on the phone

before you begin.

Some third-party options are also available. Prey (preyproject.com) is a popular option, available not only for mobile devices but also Windows, OS X and Ubuntu laptops. If you have several devices spanning multiple platforms, it’s worth considering an option such as this, which lets you track them all from a single interface.

Device Manager offers the easiest way to track an Android phone. You don’t need to have the app installed on your phone to use it, but you do need to check that your settings are correctly configured before you lose it. To start using Device Manager, open the Google Settings app (not the phone’s own Settings app) and tap on Security. Under Device Manager ensure the options to ‘Remotely locate this device’ and ‘Allow remote lock and erase’ are enabled.

Location access also needs to be switched on for Device Manager to work. Once again open the Google Settings app, but this time choose Location. On the next screen tap ‘Google Location History’ under Location Services, then ensure it’s switched on. You now have two ways of tracking a lost Android phone.

If the phone is switched on and has a signal you’ll be able to track it in Device Manager  head to bit.ly/1SvwD2V on another device and sign into your Google account. It should automatically find your device and report its location on a map. Also in Device Manager you’ll find options to make the phone ring, lock out a suspected thief or wipe its contents. There is also an Android Device Manager app, which is useful if you have several Android devices to track. It’s free from Google Play.

Another option, if your phone is switched off, is to check your location history to find its last reported location. You can do this by visiting bit.ly/1IT79rQ and tapping on Manage History under Places you go.

You’ll now see a map of all the places in which your device has reported its location during a time period that you specify. The last known location is where Google last saw it before the battery died, and if your luck’s in it may still be there. Note that location history uses Wi-Fi- and mobile signals rather than GPS, so it won’t be as accurate as Android Device Manager.

                                             How to locate a lost iPhone

To locate a lost Apple device you need Find My iPhone but before you lose your iPhone you’ll need to ensure it’s set up on your device. Just tap on Settings, iCloud, then scroll down to and enable Find My iPhone. Also turn on the option below, which sends your last known location just before your battery dies. Find My iPhone requires location services to be active, too, which you’ll find under Settings, Privacy, Location Services.

Having set up Find My iPhone, you have two ways to track a lost device. Firstly, you can use the free Find My iPhone app on another Apple device to track your phone.

Alternatively, sign into your account on a desktop browser at iCloud.com, then tap Find My iPhone. If you have multiple devices pick the one that’s been misplaced.

Having selected your phone, Find My iPhone will show you on a map its last known location, and offer options to sound an alarm, lock it or erase its contents.

                                   How to locate a lost Windows phone

Windows Phone also has its own built-in phone tracker feature. From the home screen swipe to the right to open the apps list, then scroll down to and select Settings.

Scroll down the Settings pane until you find the Privacy section. Here you’ll find options for Location and Find my phone. The first should be turned on by default; open the Find my phone option and enable the option to ‘Save my phone’s location periodically and before the battery runs out to make it easier to find’.

To later find a lost Windows phone, all you need do is log into your Windows account a bit.ly/1J7WWe2. Hit Find my phone under the device you’re looking to locate.

You’ll now see a map onscreen showing you the last place your Windows phone reported its location. As with Android Device Manager, also here are options to Ring, Lock and Erase.