The Apple Core

Jason D. O'Grady & David Morgenstern

The Orlando Incident Part 3/3: How to protect your iPhone from loss

By | December 8, 2010, 12:01am PST

Summary: After successfully recovering my lost iPhone I wanted to share some tips on how to protect your iPhone from loss and how to get it back if you do.

In case you haven’t been following the drama, on Saturday I lost my iPhone and on Monday I got it back. After successfully recovering my lost iPhone I wanted to share some tips on how to protect your iPhone from loss and how to get it back if you do.

1. Enable Find My iPhone

When Apple announced iOS 4.2 last month, it made Find My iPhone free for users of current-generation hardware (i.e. iPhone 4, iPad and fourth-generation iPod touch). If you have one of these devices, enable FMI right away — it’s disabled by default. Seriously, do it right now, it saved me $700 by not having to buy a replacement unsubsidized iPhone 4.

Although it is only free on Apple’s current generation hardware, Lifehacker has discovered a loophole to get Find My iPhone for free on pre-2010 devices. Simply create your free FMI account on a current generation device. From Apple’s iOS footnote 3:

You can create a free Find My iPhone account on any iPhone 4, iPad, or iPod touch (4th generation) running iOS 4.2. Once you create an account on a qualifying device, use your Apple ID and password to enable Find My iPhone on your other devices running iOS 4.2.

2. Add a passcode lock

It’s a bit of a pain when you first enable it, but adding a passcode lock (Settings > General > Passcode Lock) can prevent an unauthorized user from rummaging through your personal data. If someone has your iPhone and access to your email, it’s trivial to “recover” the passwords for your banks and brokerage accounts.

3. Use a product like Nio

I haven’t tried it yet, but Nio (~$60) is an intriguing hardware device that prevents the loss or theft of your iPhone by wirelessly tethering it to a Bluetooth dongle on your keychain. It also works for other stuff too.

Although MobileMe costs $99 per year — and is well worth it — some people can’t justify the expense. CNet notes that two cheaper alternatives to Find My iPhone are available:

Fortunately, there are alternatives. On the low-tech side there’s StuffBak, a coded recovery label you slap on the back of your iPhone. The finder dials a toll-free number or visits the StuffBak site; the service arranges return shipping at no cost to the finder.

The good Samaritan also gets 20 bucks’ worth of StuffBak stuff and any cash reward you want to add to the pot. As for you, recovery costs vary depending on the service plan you choose, but they won’t be more than $30.

Getting closer to a MobileMe-style solution, GadgetTrak is a free app designed to help you locate a stolen iPhone (so you can recover it vigilante-style! Or, if you’re boring and law-abiding, with the police’s help).

4. Options for jailbreakers

If your device is jailbroken you could use Cylay in Cydia. It costs $19.99 per year and there is a free trial available.

Moving forward, there a lots of ways that we can better protect our devices.

Reader ClearCreek posted a suggestion in the TalkBack under my second installment: A lost handset could take a series of photos from the front and rear cameras silently then send them via SMS and/or email to the owner. Heck, software could turn on the camera and mic and broadcast a live audio and video feed to the owner or police. This brings up all kinds of privacy issues and would have to implemented fairly.

Then there’s Apple’s patent application titled “Systems and Methods for Identifying Unauthorized Users of an Electronic Device” that was filed in February 2009 and published in August. It details security measures that automatically protect devices from thieves and other “unauthorized users.” The security ramifications are tantelizing, including being able to identify an authorized user by their “photograph, recording, or heartbeat.”

I light of the recent events, I’m a huge advocate of Find My iPhone, and think that it alone is worth MobileMe’s $99 annual subscription fee.

What’s your take? What do you suggest to protect/recover a lost iPhone?

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Topics

Jason O'Grady is a journalist and author specializing in mobile technology. He has published six books on Apple and mobile gadgets and his PowerPage blog has been publishing for over 15 years.

Disclosure

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason D. O'Grady is the creator and editor of O'Grady's PowerPage, which has been publishing mobile technology news since 1995. He maintains an advertising relationship with the following legacy advertisers on the PowerPage:

  • Amazon Associates
  • Google Adsense
  • Tekserve
  • Advertising on the PowerPage is brokered by a third-party agency (BackBeat Media) and he recuses himself from these negotiations.

Biography

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason D. O'Grady developed an affinity for Apple computers after using the original Lisa, and this affinity turned into a bona-fide obsession when he got the original 128 KB Macintosh in 1984.

He started writing one of the first Web sites about Apple (O'Grady's PowerPage) in 1995 and is considered to be one of the fathers of blogging. He has been a frequent speaker at the Macworld Expo conference and a member of the conference faculty. He also co-founded the first dedicated PowerBook User Group (PPUG) in the United States.

After winning a major legal battle with Apple in 2006, he set the precedent that independent journalists are entitled to the same protections under the First Amendment as members of the mainstream media.

O'Grady is the author of The Nexus One Pocket Guide, The Droid Pocket Guide, The Google Phone Pocket Guide, and The Garmin nuvi Pocket Guide (Peachpit Press), the author of Corporations That Changed the World: Apple Inc. (Greenwood Press), and a contributor to The Mac Bible (Peachpit Press). In addition, he has contributed to numerous Mac publications over the years, including MacWEEK, Macworld, and MacPower (Japan).

When he's not writing about Apple for ZDNet at The Apple Core, he enjoys spending time with his family in New Jersey.

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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
jackson1984-24316069205748857739440257893812 11th Oct
I relish coming back again as part of your website web page. I stumbled on it when I used to nfl football shop be wanting out in yahoo. Your knowledge has served me enormously. It absolutely was precisely what I've been needing.
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get a diferent screen protector,get one that isn't flimsy, they tend to be harder, and they're more expensive (like $14 for one) but they go on smooth as long as the screen is clean and they don't leave bubbles because the screen protector is harder plastic so it won't wrinkle or bubble up easily...

http://renadexreview-rainaki.blogspot.com/2010/12/renadex-review.html
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Let me ask this
bobiroc 8th Dec 2010
I gave my old iPhone 3G to my wife. Is it possible to do that method of enabling the find my iPhone on a current device and apply it to my wife's phone using my Apple ID and not interfering with her settings or Apple ID for iTunes and what not? Not that I want to track my wife but I would like to keep tabs on the phone as she has left it places on more than one occasion. It is for that reason and the fact that she does not take care of her phones that she will always get a lower end or hand-me down device.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
cyberslammer2 8th Dec 2010
@bobiroc Yeah we know why you want it.

Stalker.
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Typical.
SonofaSailor Updated - 8th Dec 2010
@cyberslammer2

God forbid anyone wants/needs something that the iDevice can't do, or something that Steve Jobs didn't present as "magic" in a press conference.

And when someone poses a legitimate question or need, they called names and accused of stalking their wife.

Similar to numerous posts and forums about "how do I delete a single phone call from the log on my iPhone, without jb'ing it" The Apple idiots answer: "stop cheating on your spouse. that's the only reason you could possibly have to want to delete a single phone call. Apple didn't include that functionality so you don't need it. Stop being a wh0re."
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@cyberslammer2

"Yeah we know why you want it."

sure you do..I said so in my post above. Do I need to say it again?
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RE: Typical
bobiroc 8th Dec 2010
@SonofaSailor

"Similar to numerous posts and forums about "how do I delete a single phone call from the log on my iPhone, without jb'ing it" The Apple idiots answer: "stop cheating on your spouse. that's the only reason you could possibly have to want to delete a single phone call. Apple didn't include that functionality so you don't need it. Stop being a wh0re."

I have often wondered that too to get rid of the caller IDs of people I do not want in my recent list like that of a spam/telemarketing call or maybe I did a side job for someone that I no longer need that number in there so I can shorten the list. But I realize now it must be because I am cheating on my wife and that I want to stalk her that I ask for features that Apple does not feel they need to give me.

Speaking of features, I cannot grasp why in this day and age with what phones can do today that we cannot block numbers or set up profiles to send some numbers directly to voicemail. Or even to have separate voicemail profiles depending on caller groups. I, like many people, use their phone for both work and personal and often thought wouldn't be nice that the numbers that are in my Friends/Family groups go to one greeting, and the numbers that are in my work group go to another and even numbers unknown go to a completely another greeting. I mean I can do that on my work phone so that internal calls get one greeting and external calls get another and even numbers I have manually entered for external can get a separate greeting. There are other things that I have thought of too but can't help but thinking why this cannot be done from the start.
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@ SonofaSailor

No - he asked for a feature that the iPhone has had for a long time.

He just asked if you could bypass the charges for using it.

And in response got a joking response about stalking.

Apple did include the functionality, the other bloggers probably had the comprehension skills to know that.

So your comment is completely out of line, and shows the usual hate speech lack of knowledge of the people and products you are attacking!!!
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
Pete "athynz" Athens 8th Dec 2010
@cyberslammer2 That was a pretty ignorant comment dude... His reason for asking is the EXACT same reason I got MobileMe for all 3 of my family's iPhones to begin with - to be able to track the device if it's ever lost or stolen - does that make ME a stalker as well?
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
non-biased 17th Dec 2010
@SonofaSailor While I will not claim to know if slammer's post was a joke or not, I can see how it could have been. On the other hand your post has no relevance, input or help and is just another attempt to attack a product you don't like and another poster that you don't like, pathetic.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
McMocaChocolate Updated - 8th Dec 2010
@bobiroc

I don't think you can cross Apple IDs as each are tied to a Mobile Me account (MM). The only option would POSSIBLY be is to have the (MM) me family plan. I only have an individual MM account so I do not know for sure, but I logically suspect that family MM accounts have an account administrator who reins over each account. If this is the case, then in the grand scheme of things, YES you can track your wife's iFon and she can keeper her own Apple ID, settings, etc. and just be able to be independent of your account.

With this in mind I recommend giving Apple Support a call (800-275-2273) or do a chat with them (www.apple.com/support/mobileme) using the "express lane" URL at the bottom of the page and get answers to your specific needs.

Let me know what you find out so I can help others too!

New Username: McMocoChocolate
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@McMocaChocolate

I haven't tried this - but since the Apple ID for the MobileMe tracking is entered completely separately from the store ID, and along with several mail accounts, I doubt that there is a problem.
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My Son lost his iPhone in SF getting out of a cab. We went to mobile me, found it on the map, he went to the street location while I sent the help signal to the phone. He found the phone on the ground and all is good! Great system!
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There's also an app called FoneHome that costs $1.99 and works very well at updating its location. They provide a free web site at which you can check your phone's location.
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ALso, don't forget that AT&T can enable something called FamilyMap even after your phone is lost, to *help* locate your phone, but beware -- it only uses triangulation from cell towers for iphones 4s at least, so it is very inaccurate. Still, it can help.
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@mlkazar

It will only use triangulation with any phone because that is the only info the carrier can get.
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I lost my iPhone 3G almost a year into my contract. With no upgrade possible, I had to by a replacement 3GS for over $400 dollars. I now pay MobileMe $99 a year just for the Find My Phone feature. The passcode is a bit of peace of mind day to day, but I really could have used that $400 for something else, like presents that Xmas.
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$2.99/mo equipment insurance?
kd5auq 8th Dec 2010
As soon as I connectected to my employer's Exchange server it forced me to enable a password. Password and equipment insurance seem to be the most cost effective. The kindness of a stranger to return it if found is iffy at best.
sad
disguise it as a Windblows phone 7!!! NOBODY would bother to steal it then!!
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
Relorian@... 8th Dec 2010
@cyberspammer2
Heaven forbid we dont all want an iPhone. How dare we want a phone that's applications are free (Unless you jail break your iPhone in which case you void your warranty) and open source or that doesnt cost an extremely high amount of money for being an over glorified cellphone/mp3 player.

I smell apple fanboy.
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@Relorian@...
I smell apple fanboy.

You do because you do not have a clue.

JailBreaking does not make apps any more or less free.

Many, many apps are free. Apple does not prevent free apps, in fact they provide distribution service for free apps, called the App store.

Apple only charges for Apps if the app developer decides to charge for the app, and the cost of the app is decided by the developer, not by Apple.

I smell ignorant hate speaker!
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The issue with using the passcode lock is that no one can then try to figure out who owns the phone. I use the lock but modify my home screen wallpaper using the Wallpaper Labeler app to include a contact phone number (not my cell number of course) and an email address to help the honest person who found the phone to contact me. Fortunately, I have not had to test this feature yet.
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when you started with this statement: "When Apple announced iOS 4.2 last month, it made Find My iPhone free for users of current-generation hardware..."

If all you want is FMI, you don't need to pay. That's what 'free' means.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
Pete "athynz" Athens 8th Dec 2010
@msalzberg I'm going to go out on a limb here and mention that not everyone has a current generation iOS device - I'm getting my iPhone 4 in 2 days but both my wife and child have the older iPhone 3G and have to pay for MobileMe to enable to FMI feature.

Of course now that I'm getting a current gen device I'll try that trick that was mentioned at the end of the article and ditch MobileMe if it works.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
cwallen19803@... 8th Dec 2010
I can't believe that someone who carries a $700 device around in their pocket or attached to their hip can't come up with another $99 for MobileMe. The whole mobile phone scene is so locked up in subsidies that it isn't apparent how much these things actually cost until you look into replacing them out of pocket. They should be realistically priced to begin with so that you are painfully aware of the cost of the device and the cost of the service. Otherwise, get a phone you can afford to lose.
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@cwallen19803@...

Because most of us paid only $200 - $300 for it with a cell phone plan. $99 a year may not be worth it to some people. I know it is not to me. The phone tracking is the only thing that appealed to me and possibly others. I already have my calendars and contacts sync'd through exchange and my home outlook and have other FREE services that act like a file storage and picture storage I can access online and even some cases straight from my phone. $99 a year is a lot of money for services like that. Maybe $40 a year or less? Heck I only pay $100 a year for my Onstar and $49 a year for my XBox live and both of them offer me a whole lot more than what MobileMe offers. Maybe to some it may be worth it but from the free trial I got it was not all that great aside from the phone tracking feature.
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"A phone you can afford to lose"?
Laraine Anne Barker 8th Dec 2010
For me there is no such thing.
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@cwallen19803@...
Wow that would help save a iPhone or money how?
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I use 'Mobile Superhero' from YouGetItBack.com for my phone -- 20 bucks a year. 'Laptop Superhero' will run you $30/yr.
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iGotYa will take a picture of the person holding the phone, when unlock code is entered incorrectly, and acquire GPS location data, and email it to the email address of your choice. I've gotten my own face pic back a couple times when I goofed on unlock code, so I know it works. Costs Euro 4.99.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
rszanti@... 8th Dec 2010
I read the app is free but then I read Mobileme is also required and Mobileme is $99 a year. But I've also read Mobileme is free if you have a 4.2 op system and install FMI first. Then too mobileme suggests installing Mobileme first, then installing the FMI app. I'm a bit confused and I see I'm not alone. Can anyone provide the reality and show us the path ?
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@rszanti@...

If you have an iOS 4 device, Find My iPhone is free. You have to set up a MobileMe account, but you don't get all of the features of MobileMe.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
d_agranov@... 8th Dec 2010
Went to the Nio Web site...iOS is not supported, so how are you getting this to work with your iPhone???
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I didn't see the iPhone on the Nio's compatibility list? Am I missing something?
Nio people says that they have been waiting for Apple to enable background apps. This has been present in iPhone 4 since its introduction, so i don't know what they are waiting for.
I am really hoping for this device to show in the iPhone.

Thanks anyway for the suggestion.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
PMTTZ Updated - 9th Dec 2010
Well I have a iPhone 4 & have been a AT&T Biz customer for 7 years I have been lucky Never a lost phone. My good friend though who I said "yes I like my iPhone 4 I would move to AT&T & get one" Then to find she did do just that & three months latter two stolen iPhones I want to say that both had MoblieMe & Apple and police did not help at all after calling Apple & AT&T only AT&T let me help & after I talked to them agreed to give her a Samsung Captive for $84 (odd cost I know) but I know AT&T can use a SN or IMEI number (the IMEI is only there to help find stolen/lost phones) I know if it was a BackBerry there with the $3 more a month there would have not been a problem so why would Apple care more stolen iPhones more $ Apple gains where AT&T can loose not using IMDI is a rip off on my iPhone's. I have bought iTrackMobile it has all of what Cylay does but dose not need to be jailbroken. I must say it looks good on papper but have not put it the test thank god.
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Remember where you left it, give it a try.
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A good lock screen honesty will help
frobert@... 31st Dec 2010
It is always a good idea to set an explicit Lock Screen, with a phone number to reach you.

You can do it by creating an image from your PC or directly on your device with my app. See: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-signature/id409956176?mt=8#ls=1
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A good lock screen honesty will help
frobert@... 1st Jan 2011
It is always a good idea to set an explicit Lock Screen, with a phone number to reach you.

You can do it by creating an image from your PC or directly on your device with my app. See: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-signature/id409956176?mt=8#ls=1
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A good lock screen honesty will help
frobert@... 2nd Jan 2011
Even with "Find my iPhone", it is always a good idea to set an explicit Lock Screen, with a phone number to reach you.

You can do it by creating an image from your PC or directly on your iPhone/iPad with my app. See: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-signature/id409956176
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Gadget Trak
leffler2 21st Jun
I checked Gadget Trak. It's not FREE. They are asking $3.99 for the app.
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RE: How to protect your iPhone from loss
jackson1984-24316069205748857739440257893812 11th Oct
I relish coming back again as part of your website web page. I stumbled on it when I used to nfl football shop be wanting out in yahoo. Your knowledge has served me enormously. It absolutely was precisely what I've been needing.

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