Lots of people come to the boards asking how to remotely prevent their phones being used because they are lost or stolen. Sorry, you can't.
What should I do?
What you need to do is report the loss/theft to the police and to your network operator immediately that you know of the problem - your operator can then deactivate the SIM so that whoever has your phone can't make any calls on your account. Depending on which country you are in, your operator could also add your phone's IMEI to a blacklist shared with other networks - this will prevent the phone being used on networks in that country and is the most effective way to thwart thieves and those who buy stolen goods from thieves.
How do I protect my data in case of loss/theft?
You can lock your phone with the security keyguard, this will then kick in after a pre-set number of minutes, requiring the security code (sometimes called the lock code) to be entered in order to access the phone.
If you intend to protect your phone data this way, there are two important things to remember. The first is to change the code from the standard 12345, which virtually everybody knows, and the second is not to forget your code, because if you do you will need to visit your local Nokia service point to clear the code - a process which will also wipe your data.
However, the real truth is that unless you are
Barack Obama, Madonna or somebody equally high-profile, the average
thief doesn't care for your data. The common thief is after the
hardware - the phone would be sold on and in use by somebody else, your
data would be wiped. The best security for your phone itself is to keep
it secure.
Can I lock the phone remotely?
Only if you are prepared for this eventuality in advance. Some phones such as the N96 have a Remote Phone Locking facility which you can activate in the security settings which will lock the phone when it receives a pre-set message. On other S60 smartphones, you may be able to install third-party software to achieve the same thing. All of this, of course, relies on your phone being able to receive the security message, which means that it must be switched on and your SIM card to still be in.
Can my phone be tracked?
Practically, no. If your SIM card is in and the phone switched on, your network operator knows roughly where it is by the base station (mast) that it is closest to, but this is not something that is available to the end user and it only gives an approximate location anyway.
Some people ask why their phone can't be tracked by GPS. The reason is that GPS-equipped phones have GPS receivers only, they receive signals from GPS satellites in order to work out the coordinates of the phone's location on the Earth's surface - the phone is not in any way broadcasting its location for the GPS system or any other system to follow.
Can't I destroy the phone remotely?
No, stories that you can are nothing more than urban legend.
Support
