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I lost my 3g iPhone yesterday...

B

braeburn

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 23, 2006
70
0
and called/texted to see if the finder will answer but of course they won't. Kept calling and now goes straight to voicemail. I've cancelled the service so the finder can't use the phone feature.

I didn't have any tracking app installed so can't trace it.

What I would like to know is if the finder installs their own sim card and starts using it, can't it be traced then? That is of course if ATT will be willing to do it to which i've read in many forums they won't cause they want you to buy another one.

I'm kicking myself for not having the passcode enabled. If that was, would the finder still be able to hack/unlock/whatever to gain access to the phones features?
 
1) How do you know someones found it? Maybe it's lost and run out of battery

2) Phone the phone company and tell them IMEI number and they will block it so even if someone finds it and uses another SIM they won't be able to use it.
 
robbieduncan said:
1) How do you know someones found it? Maybe it's lost and run out of battery

2) Phone the phone company and tell them IMEI number and they will block it so even if someone finds it and uses another SIM they won't be able to use it.
Click to expand...

ATT and other U.S carriers don't blacklist IMEI numbers.
 
robbieduncan said:
1) How do you know someones found it? Maybe it's lost and run out of battery

2) Phone the phone company and tell them IMEI number and they will block it so even if someone finds it and uses another SIM they won't be able to use it.
Click to expand...

1. Because initially it would ring several times and then go to voicemail, now straight to voicemail...It was fully charged with several features disabled so it doesn't drain the battery...

2. Called up ATT and rep says they can't do this...Told him I know people who have had their imei blocked, which I wasn't being truthful, and was told they can't block the imei and no carrier in the US does that...I checked this out online and sure enough, several sites have the same response...I guess in the EU, they can but not in the US...
 
braeburn said:
1. Because initially it would ring several times and then go to voicemail, now straight to voicemail...It was fully charged with several features disabled so it doesn't drain the battery...

2. Called up ATT and rep says they can't do this...Told him I know people who have had their imei blocked, which I wasn't being truthful, and was told they can't block the imei and no carrier in the US does that...I checked this out online and sure enough, several sites have the same response...I guess in the EU, they can but not in the US...
Click to expand...
The rep is correct about not supporting IMEI Blacklists in the US.

Did you look in OLAM and see if any calls were made from the phone before it was disabled? Often individuals make calls from the phone as they try to figure out who owns it or before they decide to keep it.

The PIN password is really only to protect your data on the phone and it is sometimes easier when someone finds a lost iPhone just to look at the address book to find the owner. If they want to keep the phone, there is really nothing more you can do at this point.

Dave
 
I don't mean to trail off-topic, but does AT&T allow you to purchase a new iPhone for the price of $299 if you have lost/broken your phone? You'd think they would since you still have an account with them, but who knows.

I had a friend who thought he lost his iPhone, but he put up an ad on Craigslist about his lost iPhone and someone who had found it contacted him. I suppose people aren't always that friendly or lucky...

Good luck!
 
Man, I am sorry to hear that you lost your iPhone. I almost had a heart attack once when I almost lost mine. i can't imagine.

I always keep mine locked. As much to keep prying eyes off of it as to keep the info safe if I lose it. All of my friends and acquaintances walk up and says "oh, is this the iPhone?" Then they start looking through pictures and emails and stuff. If they do that imagine what someone you don't know is going to do. :( I really hope you find it.
 
kidtronix said:
I don't mean to trail off-topic, but does AT&T allow you to purchase a new iPhone for the price of $299 if you have lost/broken your phone? You'd think they would since you still have an account with them, but who knows.

I had a friend who thought he lost his iPhone, but he put up an ad on Craigslist about his lost iPhone and someone who had found it contacted him. I suppose people aren't always that friendly or lucky...

Good luck!
Click to expand...
Some AT&T and even some Apple stores did this in the early days following the initial release of the iPhone but as soon as individuals started to abuse the process, it was changed to a single early upgrade at the $399/$499 price. This changed again as of March 25, 2009 when they started selling iPhone 3Gs at $599/$699. So now you might be able to get the $399/$499 price but you might also get the $599/$699 price, since it does not cost you anything to ask, go to the store and see what they offer now that you know all of the possible price points.

Dave
 
When I cancelled the service, no calls were made after the last known phone call, which was a good thing...

Using craigslist is not a bad idea actually...I'll have to make a post...

But going to my initial thought, if the person uses their active sim card, couldn't it be tracked then? That's if ATT wants to help me with it...If not, isn't there any other way to track it?

I'm just trying to make it difficult for the person who found it from using as little of the phone as possible...

Spoke with ATT regarding getting a replacement iphone and I'll have to dish out the full contract price and the contract starts over again...So basically signing up again which blows...
 
braeburn said:
But going to my initial thought, if the person uses their active sim card, couldn't it be tracked then? That's if ATT wants to help me with it...If not, isn't there any other way to track it?
Click to expand...
Every phone has a unique "serial" number (IMEI, in the case of AT&T), so technically, AT&T could look to see if a phone with your IMEI is registered on their network. As a matter of policy, they won't. (AFAIK, no US wireless carrier will help track a stolen phone)

With the potential for a new model of iPhone to come out in the next month or two, you might look at picking up a used AT&T "regular" phone from eBay or craigslist and re-purchase the iPhone when the next model comes out.
 
aristobrat said:
Every phone has a unique "serial" number (IMEI, in the case of AT&T), so technically, AT&T could look to see if a phone with your IMEI is registered on their network. As a matter of policy, they won't. (AFAIK, no US wireless carrier will help track a stolen phone)

With the potential for a new model of iPhone to come out in the next month or two, you might look at picking up a used AT&T "regular" phone from eBay or craigslist and re-purchase the iPhone when the next model comes out.
Click to expand...

If they won't help track a stolen phone, then they won't help track a lost one which totally sucks since they have the means to do it.

If the person does use the phone, can't we track it somehow since I still have the box and know what the IMEI is? I guess this is really stretching it but I don't want to make it easy for the person who found it...
 
I hope you find you iphone. I can't magine what I'm gonna do if I lost mine. Make sure check between car seat and stuff. Once I thought i lost my phone, it rang but no answer but eventually it went to VM(battery drained). next day when I'm cleaning my car, there it was wedged between driver's seat and arm rest. Good luck.:)
 
braeburn said:
If they won't help track a stolen phone, then they won't help track a lost one which totally sucks since they have the means to do it.

If the person does use the phone, can't we track it somehow since I still have the box and know what the IMEI is? I guess this is really stretching it but I don't want to make it easy for the person who found it...
Click to expand...

Sorry to be a stick in the mud, but if you lost it and somebody (dishonest) found it you can consider it gone for good.

Think of it as a lost $500 bill.
 
Sehnsucht said:
Actually, I believe AT&T does. At least that's what I understand from people I know who have had their iPhones lost/stolen. :confused:
Click to expand...
Not when I called. :( Mine was stolen once and I called AT&T and was told nothign they can do, even when I told them I had the serial number of my iPhone.

braeburn said:
and called/texted to see if the finder will answer but of course they won't. Kept calling and now goes straight to voicemail. I've cancelled the service so the finder can't use the phone feature.

I didn't have any tracking app installed so can't trace it.

What I would like to know is if the finder installs their own sim card and starts using it, can't it be traced then? That is of course if ATT will be willing to do it to which i've read in many forums they won't cause they want you to buy another one.

I'm kicking myself for not having the passcode enabled. If that was, would the finder still be able to hack/unlock/whatever to gain access to the phones features?
Click to expand...
Everyone seemed to cover this stuff pretty well, but I figured I'd weigh in on your last question. Even with a password, someone with decent knowledge could not only get into your iPhone to see what's there, but could recover stuff you thought you had deleted. :)
 
Did you have Gmail setup on your phone? You can check and see what the last 5 IPs were used to connect to gmail. Not sure if that would help though.

I've also heard of people setting a wallpaper lock screen with emergency numbers to call if the phone is lost should you have your PIN security set on the phone.
 
bytethese said:
Even with a password, someone with decent knowledge could not only get into your iPhone to see what's there, but could recover stuff you thought you had deleted. :)
Click to expand...

That's what I thought too :(

Bearing in mind that nothing is really "unlockable" to an "expert", I wonder if there is a way to, to all intents and purposes, lock the 'phone...
 
powaking said:
Did you have Gmail setup on your phone? You can check and see what the last 5 IPs were used to connect to gmail. Not sure if that would help though.

I've also heard of people setting a wallpaper lock screen with emergency numbers to call if the phone is lost should you have your PIN security set on the phone.
Click to expand...

Nope didn't have gmail setup on the phone...

I called again to see if I can get the IMEI blocked but got same answer, NO...I guess no US carrier will block any IMEI so anybody that finds an iPhone will be very happy unless it had a tracking app installed...
 
dave006 said:
Some AT&T and even some Apple stores did this in the early days following the initial release of the iPhone but as soon as individuals started to abuse the process, it was changed to a single early upgrade at the $399/$499 price. This changed again as of March 25, 2009 when they started selling iPhone 3Gs at $599/$699. So now you might be able to get the $399/$499 price but you might also get the $599/$699 price, since it does not cost you anything to ask, go to the store and see what they offer now that you know all of the possible price points.

Dave
Click to expand...

Yikes! That's a lot of money. Thanks for the heads up, I'll be extra careful with my phone now...
 
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