What to Do if Your Phone Is Stolen
By Samuel Pfeiffer, Founder of SafeOrStolen · Updated September 24, 2026
Short answer: Use Apple Find My or Google Find My Device to locate, lock, or mark the phone as lost. Call your carrier to suspend the line and ask them to block the phone's IMEI. File a police report with the IMEI, then change your important passwords, contact your insurer if the phone is covered, and log the phone on SafeOrStolen.
Where to find your IMEI without the phone
Police, carriers, and insurers will ask for the IMEI. You can usually find it without the phone.
- The original box label, which usually shows the IMEI or serial number.
- Your carrier account, bill, or device-payment agreement.
- iPhone: your Apple Account device list lists your signed-in devices; Apple explains where the IMEI appears on each model.
- Android: your Google Account device list can show the phone model; the carrier or box is the most reliable IMEI source.
- Purchase receipt, insurance policy, or a phone backup record.
Steps to take now
Work through these in order. Speed matters for tracking, blocking, and insurance, and the identifier is what police, carriers, registries, and insurers ask for.
1. Locate, lock, or mark it as lost
Cost: Free
On iPhone, sign in to Find My on another device or iCloud.com and mark the phone as lost. On Android, use Google Find My Device to ring, secure, or erase it. Do not go to the location yourself.
What it tells you: Where the phone last reported its location, and it locks the phone with a message. Share location information with police rather than acting on it.
2. Google Find My Device (Android)
Cost: Free
Sign in with the Google Account on the phone to ring, secure, or erase it remotely.
What it tells you: The phone's last known location when location and Find My Device were turned on.
3. Call your carrier
Cost: Free
Ask the carrier to suspend the line so no one can use your number, and ask them to block the phone's IMEI on their network as stolen.
What it tells you: The carrier can confirm the suspension and blacklist request. Get a reference number.
4. File a police report
Cost: Free
Report the theft to local police with the IMEI, serial number, make, model, color, and when and where it happened. Apple also recommends reporting a missing iPhone to local law enforcement.
What it tells you: You get a report number that carriers, insurers, and SafeOrStolen reports can reference.
5. Secure your accounts
Cost: Free
Change passwords for email, banking, and your Apple or Google account, and remove saved payment cards from the device if your account allows it.
What it tells you: It limits what a thief can reach through the phone.
6. Contact your insurer or device-protection plan
Cost: Depends on your policy
If the phone is covered by carrier insurance, a protection plan, or homeowners or renters insurance, start a claim. Some plans require the device to stay in Find My or require a police report.
What it tells you: What your policy covers and what documents it needs.
7. Log the item on SafeOrStolen
Cost: Free with an account
Add the item, its identifier, and your police report number at /report-stolen. SafeOrStolen checks its own stolen-item reports whenever someone runs that identifier.
What it tells you: Anyone who checks that identifier on SafeOrStolen sees that it was reported stolen. It does not notify police, carriers, insurers, or other registries.
Mistakes to avoid
- Going to a tracked location or meeting the person who has your phone.
- Replying to texts or emails claiming the phone was found that ask for your Apple or Google password or a code; these are common phishing attempts.
- Removing the phone from your Apple or Google account before your insurer or carrier says to, which can end Activation Lock protection.
- Waiting to call the carrier, which leaves your number and accounts exposed.
Keep records and follow up
- Keep a single file with the police report number, officer or agency name, identifier, photos, receipt, and every call reference number.
- Write down dates and times of each call, claim, and report.
- Watch marketplaces for your item and send any listing to the investigating officer instead of contacting the seller.
- Update your report and registries if the item is recovered, so it is no longer shown as stolen.
Do not try to recover an item yourself or confront anyone who has it. Give the information to police. Call emergency services only if someone is in immediate danger.
Log it on SafeOrStolen. Add the item and its identifier to SafeOrStolen's stolen-item reports, so anyone who checks that identifier on SafeOrStolen sees it was reported stolen. This does not replace a police report.
Report a stolen itemWhere SafeOrStolen fits
SafeOrStolen is a stolen-item verification hub for buyers and sellers covering phones, vehicles, license plates, serial-numbered electronics and power tools, firearms, and bicycles. For theft victims, the useful part is the report: once your item is logged, a buyer who checks its identifier on SafeOrStolen sees it was reported stolen. SafeOrStolen does not file police reports or contact carriers or insurers for you.
SafeOrStolen checks its own stolen-item reports, public web results, and AI notes. Guns are also checked against police theft and loss reports from 34 states plus live Ohio records, bikes against a national stolen-bicycle registry, and paid phone checks search the lost and stolen phone blacklist. It does not search NCIC, DMV or insurance records; those are separate checks described in this guide.
Buyers can save the result with their other due-diligence records. After a clean check, sellers can share a Proof of Clean Purchase: a permanent, timestamped verification record. It is not a title, guarantee of ownership, or legal document.
Frequently asked questions
Can my carrier block a stolen phone?
Yes. Ask your carrier to suspend the line and block the phone's IMEI as stolen. Blocking stops the phone from being used on that carrier's network and participating networks.
How do I find my IMEI if the phone is gone?
Check the original box, your carrier account or bill, the purchase receipt, or your insurance paperwork. Apple's support site explains where the IMEI appears for each iPhone model.
Should I erase my stolen phone right away?
Mark it as lost first so you can still see its location and it shows your message. Erase it when you are confident you won't recover it or when your data is at risk. Follow Apple's or Google's guidance for your device.
Does reporting it on SafeOrStolen notify the police?
No. Logging it on SafeOrStolen adds the item to SafeOrStolen's own stolen-item reports so buyers who check that identifier see it. Always file a police report separately.