[ruauu2]

You'll be able to tell by my question that I know nothing about cell phones. A friend who thinks I know about these kinds of things asked me this.

If a cell phone is stolen, is there any way to locate it if it's off? I'm pretty sure the answer is no, but I have to ask.

The service has been discontinued to the phone. In case anyone attempts to use it again can it be tracked then? Does a cell phone have an electronic serial number or something that can associate it with its owner?

Thanks!

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› See More: Way to Track Stolen Phone?

[derekcyr]

I also would like to know if a cell phone can be tracked by its' serial #, especially if the SIM card gets swapped, phone gets flashed, etc...

[robinchen]

i have asked the same question,but all friends tell me that it is very difficult to get the phone back after it is stolen

[blue_bird]

Just google urself for IMEI and CEIR

[derekcyr]

I asked ATT about my Motorola Atrix (Droid). They said it is possible and they can see if someone else activated it, but in order to file a complaint, you have to get a court order to permit the police to investigate.

From what I've heard, it seems that many police departments really don't care about stolen phones and don't do anything about it at all. I feel that's quite a disservice to all the people who are in such a position as this.

I asked the representative if it were possible to find out where my last phone call was made and it was like pulling teeth. The representative said that I would have to file a subpoena. She said, "that's personal information" and was unable to give it to me. I said "personal to whom?" The phone call was made by ME on MY phone under MY account.

Another funny issue with the representative... Although I know I should have written down or saved my serial number somewhere, I do not have it off-hand. I asked if that would be something they would have (or so I would hope) when their sales rep sells you a phone. The woman said to verify my phone's serial number, she would need... guess what? My phone's serial number! Can anyone say insanity via recursion? To understand recursion, one must first understand recursion...

[jacob11]

Check your online GPS (Global Positioning system) tracking service to find the location of your stolen phone. If you have a GPS service added to your cell phone, you should be able to track its location automatically by visiting the website provided with your GPS service and logging in. This will give you a location within 100 yards of where your phone is.

On the other hand you can be file a police report about your stolen cellphone.They will able to find the nearer position of your cell phone by tracking your phone's IMEI number.