Losing a phone is a nightmare. Are text messages the only thing you have left to remember someone by? Do you know your family and friends’ numbers by heart? How many magical moments have you captured with your phone’s camera?
It gets worse. Consider all the apps on your phone, from social media, banking, rideshare, streaming, networking, security, health, travel, delivery and so on. Your phone is a huge liability for your safety and security in the wrong hands. That’s why you must take steps now should your phone go missing, stolen or broken beyond repair.
This first section is about being prepared. Here’s how to set up your phone so you don’t get nervous whenever it’s out of sight. In the worst-case scenario that a criminally-minded stranger gets ahold of your phone, you will be glad you took these steps beforehand.
Your old phone may lack critical security features, but you don’t have to spend a fortune on an upgrade. Here are the top used phones for $500 and under.
It’s simple: When your phone goes missing, no one should be able to unlock it. Let’s start by making sure this happens automatically. There are preset time options to choose from. The shorter the time, the better off you are.
Note: Exact steps may vary depending on your Android phone.
Picture this: You’re out at a local brewery with pals enjoying a cold pint when a friendly stranger starts making conversation. He seems nice enough and asks about fantasy football. You excitedly pull out your phone and unlock it to show him your draft strategies, and voilà, he sees you enter your PIN.
Do this before your next shindig: You can easily find your lost phone if you set this up ahead of time. Hey, why not do it now?
Invasion of privacy? CJ Sveen says his home insurance was dropped after aerial pics were used to spy on his property. Plus, Russian troops smuggle Starlink, Android’s new “Find My Device” feature, and the crazy lengths one hacker went to avoid paying $100,000 in child support.
🔍 AirTag vs. Google’s Find My Device: Both devices were mailed to another state in an unofficial test. The AirTag continuously updated its location, while the Android tracker took 11 hours to ping its new whereabouts. At one point, the Find My Device tracker even lost track of its location. This is why I keep an AirTag in my cars.
There are built-in tools to help you locate it using another phone or computer. Here’s the caveat: You have to make sure the feature is enabled ahead of time for it to work. Do it now!
Turn on Find My for your iPhone
Turn on Find My Device for your Android
✏️ You can even erase your phone remotely if it’s really gone. Here’s how.
People use technology to find missing objects, alert emergency services or save someone’s life. One example is an Apple Watch that detected a tumor in a 67-year-old woman from Maine.
In another, the iPhone’s emergency SOS function helped a snowboarder contact emergency services after falling into a hidden crevasse at around 10,000 feet above sea level. But probably the most significant boon to Apple’s location-tracking technology is saving a baby’s life.
Are you selling your old stuff? Old toys, shoes, clothing and jewelry are popular items for sale online. Simply post it, price it, and wait for the offers.
It gets a bit trickier when you’re selling smart devices. They contain sensitive data that you don’t want anyone else to access. Your smart speaker, for example, stores tiny bits of information about you as you use it, including your location. Tap or click here for instructions on resetting your Alexa-enabled device.
Find my Android: You can find your Google Pixel 8 or 8 Pro even if it’s dead. A new update makes sure your phone holds onto a bit of juice to track it. Just head to your Find My Device portal online to locate it.
I love my husband, but he misplaces everything from his keys to his wallet more often than you would think is even possible.
It was more of a pain years ago. These days, I’ve slapped an Apple AirTag on anything I can that he owns. We even have one on our golden retriever’s collar, just in case. Tap or click for more ingenious ways to use AirTags and Tile trackers.
Our lives are tied to our cell phones. We manage appointments, store our photos, and hold all of our contact information in the palm of our hands. Tap or click here for the five best budget smartphones under $400.
With so much riding on having your phone handy, it’s only natural that we begin to panic if our phone goes AWOL. Thankfully, technology has caught up with this potential issue and created several easy solutions.
According to a Pew Research report, 28% of smartphone owners don’t use screen locks or other security features to keep people out of their phones. Does this figure represent your Android security practice?
The same report further indicates 54% of internet users access the web via public Wi-Fi networks to perform sensitive activities, such as online shopping (21%) and banking (21%). Never access public Wi-Fi without a virtual private network. Tap or click to see how you can protect your data with a VPN.
Lockdowns are loosening, people are returning to public life and back to work. We all know the importance of washing our hands, but tech can help. Tap or click here for the best smart door locks to help prevent spreading germs.
After weeks of mandatory lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, several states are slowly starting to ease restrictions. That means your routine is about to look a lot more like it used to.
You may even be heading back to the office. We’re willing to bet it’ll look different. Tap or click for four ways offices will change post-pandemic.
The world has been at a standstill recently, but as restrictions lift across the nation we’ll start to venture out and get back to our regular schedules. At some point in the near future, you may even be leaving your home for work or school — a stark contrast to what life has been like the last couple of months.
Have you noticed how expensive new smartphones can be? If you love the latest and greatest, you can pay about $1,000 for your next Android phone. Buy a new one for every family member and you’re looking at a bill of about $4,000. Yikes!
