Cell phone theft: what to do?

If your cell phone has been stolen, you must take action immediately after the theft. We'll show you what you need to consider.

First step: have the SIM card blocked and report it

Regardless of whether the cell phone has been stolen or you have lost it, the first thing to do is to have the SIM card locked. The thief or the finder of the cell phone can otherwise send carefree messages and even make expensive calls abroad - at your expense.

• Go straight to your provider's shop or block the SIM card online, for example at Telekom, Vodafone, o2 or E-Plus / Base.
• You should then report the theft to the police. For this you need the fifteen-digit IMEI number from your mobile phone. You can find them on the invoice or on the packaging of your mobile phone. You should not do without the advertisement, because if the thief has already made a call at your expense, you can only complain to the mobile operator with the advertisement.

Find your smartphone again: Location function makes it possible

The modern smartphones can be located with little effort. However, you must have set this beforehand:

• For the iPhone you have to activate the option "Find my iPhone". We show you step by step how to locate your iPhone and what you need to consider.
• With Android smartphones, you must have activated the location function or installed the appropriate apps, for example the free "Prey Anti-Theft" app.
• You can locate your Windows Phone if you have enabled and activated the function in advance. We show you how to activate the location function on the Windows Phone.
• Tip: If you have connected your mobile phone to OneDrive, iCloud or Dropbox, it is worth taking a look at the cloud. Maybe the new owner will take photos with your phone. This may reveal the person - then you can pass the evidence on to the police.
• For more tips on how to find your lost cell phone, read our detailed guide on the subject.