Database Users

Legality of tracking stolen phone with Wavesecure etc.

I asked the police today about the legality of tracking etc your phone if stolen using wavesecure or similar in the UK.
The particular officer seemed to think it should not be a problem since it is your property and regardless of who's possession it's in you are allowed to track it.
The legality however of tracking its use is uncertain, their calls, SMS etc, but again, since the phoone is yours, it should not be a problem.
They are going to get in touch with me should further details arise.
It's good to know though that as long as one doesn't attempt to take the law into their own hands, you are ok with tracking your stolen phone and should, technically be able to use this data collected as evidence against the thief should you find yourself able to track them this way.
I don't know if this information is of use to anybody but I thought I would share what I discovered today.

Just because you own a webcamera for instance, doesn't make it okay to stick it into someones house and record their activities does it?
Tracking your phone, no problems at all with that. But i don't think you have any right to read their SMS, Calls. Its a touchy subject.
Just thought i'd add this to your post.

cymru said:
Just because you own a webcamera for instance, doesn't make it okay to stick it into someones house and record their activities does it?
Tracking your phone, no problems at all with that. But i don't think you have any right to read their SMS, Calls. Its a touchy subject.
Just thought i'd add this to your post.
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No, but if they steal your webcam and it happens to be set up to record all activity around it (normally related to yourself) had it not been illegally removed from its original location, you're not to blame nor at fault should it keep recording wherever they leave it, and then provide this as evidence to the police in order to recover said stolen item.

Fair point. to be honest i'm just arguing for the sake of it. Im very bored.

Why not.
Well, we could argue technicalities, my mrs is a lawyer so I'm sure she would argue it out with me all day long about how their are laws against it, but to be fair, I think the law would take your side regardless, and you could even have it permitted on a technicality (i.e. that the server is set up to automatically back up all your data, contacts and SMS for your own data security, should someone elses end up there through illegally obtaining and using your device, that's through no fault of yours.)

Yeah fair play, I know what you mean. Even if its your phone and gets stolen i've no doubt any defence will pick holes in why you were able to have access to their personal information. We all know how good the justice system can be in our country sometimes.

It's true, it's always possible you could end up wit hthe wrong persons data and instead end up with some silly sod who bought a cheap stolen phone off someone (equally as guilty i'd say, but that's a different argument), but that is why the services such as Wavesecure offer options to simply disable the phone and prompt the (new) user to call one of your preset "buddies" or 999 (or any other message/number you care to give them) in order to return the phone.
Normally though I would suggest this would be a last resort, because a thief would probably just dispose of the phone or destroy it if they find it locked as such.

You could always track it down yourself and make a citizens arrest ;-)
Section 24A of PACE '84 :-D
^Don't really do this

Yes
Indeed, it would be perfectly legal to make a Citizen's arrest under those circumstances, however, to stereotype the nature of such a person that is likely to steal a mobile phone, particularly from the area in which I live, it is quite possible and somewhat likely that they are either A) a violent criminal (mugging), B) A drug abuser (mugging) or C) Just outright violent (any other person).
P.S. The moral is that it's not a good idea to try go after it yourself, you might get hurt, or worse......your phone might.

I was literally typing 'Are you from liverpool?' when i read your location on the right
Best leave well alone lol. Let your phone be the only Hero in your partnership.

Indeed
I personally am from the Wirral, but I work and study in Liverpool, and as anyone from Liverpool will tell you, we from the Wirral are considered stuck up c**ts and to us, Liverpudlians are violent criminals, personally, my mrs is from Liverpool, maybe I just want to have a hard life
But anyway, should my phone get stolen, no doubt someone would try sell it to her sooner or later.

A) Just phone your local police and give them the location of the thief and phone, they would love the easy collar.
B) Thieves rights? don't make me laugh. If someone nicks my camera they don't have any rights to the photo's on it when I recover it. I would be more than happy to photograph their cuts and bruises as I use "reasonable force" to excecute my citizens arrest and send them to them.
C) If they do send sms from your phone, just note down the numbers and pass them on to the police too, chances are they are thieving smackheads too so might be able to arrest more!

mantracom said:
A) Just phone your local police and give them the location of the thief and phone, they would love the easy collar.
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yeah sure...
"my phone is somewhere in a 600m circle around main street 145, can you get it for me?"
"absolutely sir, two S.W.A.T. teams are already on their way!"

lol kendon Good one!
As for the issue itself, I wonder how this would go in a country with slightly more relaxed laws (US for example). There, I can really see issues where someone jumps in their pickup with their 'shooting club buddy', tracks their stolen phone using a laptop etc. from the passenger seat, and go setting about making use of the second amendment (click here if you don't happen to know amendments to the US constitution off by heart like me) on the thief (or unsuspecting buyer of the stolen goods).
To be honest, I'd have little sympathy for the thief in that case, regardless of how outnumbered they were. If you steal, you really do deserve what you get. What happened to the concept of an outlaw, where the law affords them no protection from others due to their disrespect of it?
^BTW, don't go doing that just cos you saw it here.
And, for the record, I'm actually from Britain, so maybe a pickup wouldn't be used...

alias_neo said:
Indeed, it would be perfectly legal to make a Citizen's arrest under those circumstances, however, to stereotype the nature of such a person that is likely to steal a mobile phone, particularly from the area in which I live, it is quite possible and somewhat likely that they are either A) a violent criminal (mugging), B) A drug abuser (mugging) or C) Just outright violent (any other person).
P.S. The moral is that it's not a good idea to try go after it yourself, you might get hurt, or worse......your phone might.
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hahahaha "or worse your phone might"

cymru said:
I was literally typing 'Are you from liverpool?' when i read your location on the right
Best leave well alone lol. Let your phone be the only Hero in your partnership.
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kendong2 said:
yeah sure...
"my phone is somewhere in a 600m circle around main street 145, can you get it for me?"
"absolutely sir, two S.W.A.T. teams are already on their way!"
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Click to collapse
LOL! This thread just made my day
Anyway, let's just hope you never have to use Wavesecure.

T-Mobile in violation of...?

IRT this article:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-sour...r-android-becoming-a-political-liability/7588
Just wondering about T-Mobile's stance in essentially going against this by openly preventing customization of the OS, if this is enforceable and if they are in fact in violation of anything at this point. Thoughts?
Is this something that could lead to a class-action lawsuit..? Just curious. Looked and didn't see if there were any other threads related to this issue.. if there is, sorry for the redundancy.

Hate to be an the apologist here, but I just don't see how this is T-Mobile's fault.
That claim could have passed a month-two ago, but now we have the Desire HD and Desire Z which have similar/same protections yet are unbranded, simfree HTC devices. It definitely seems like this was more of an HTC idea that T-Mobile embraced.

Pickx said:
Hate to be an the apologist here, but I just don't see how this is T-Mobile's fault.
That claim could have passed a month-two ago, but now we have the Desire HD and Desire Z which have similar/same protections yet are unbranded, simfree HTC devices. It definitely seems like this was more of an HTC idea that T-Mobile embraced.
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Agreed.
Overall this isn't T-Mo's fault and we shouldn't be pointing the finger at them. HTC is the culprit. It will be interesting to see if anything comes of this.
My original understanding of this "agreement" was that Apple/Microsoft/Google couldn't sue the people that jailbroke/rooted/hacked the phones. Meaning, the jailbreakers of the iPhone could literally parade in front of Job's face that "Hey, I am the one who created the jailbreak software" and Apple couldn't sue them. I didn't think the "agreement" had anything to do with companies preventing such customizations. Maybe I just missed it.
I would much rather see these eFuse type chips and what not go away. I understand that root shouldn't be a push button option but a few hours of work by a smart dev should be enough of a deterrent from your avg joe to prevent random bricks.

I agree with what is above - this is in no way T-Mobile's fault. Also, this is a repost as well.

have you guys ever heard "you are the company you keep" or "aiding and abetting" or "accessory to...." bottom line t-mobile has their name branded on the phone and in the phone. they knew about this sh*t so they are just as responsible. trust me i've had my run in's with the law a couple of time to know how technical stuff like this gets.

t-mobile knew what was in the phone when they received it and even before so why shouldn't they be held just as responsible. If my name and signature is on a product I sell and endorse then why shouldn't I be held responsible? Its common sense
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

t-mobile has responsibilities for any t-mobile branded phone
I have faith the G2 will be fully rooted, in spite of HTC and/or T-Mobile.....HTC really pulled a Motorola on this one (trying to lock the phone up)....I have no doubt that if t-mobile pushed HTC an easy root solution could easily be forthcoming, but T-mobile is just playing the 'not my fault' bs game....
I have to be content knowing the G2 is the best Android phone currently on the market, and that the dev community will defeat root (once radio/hboot is fully dealt with....)....at least VISIONARY temp root allows easy wireless tether and Titanium in the meantime....

Its wrong. As soon as you buy something and becomes yours nobody should tell you how to use it or what to use it for. If I buy a phone to wipe my ass that shouldn't be tmobiles bussines. All they should be worried about is to sell phones and give services, but forbidding ppl to do what they want with what's theirs its very very wrong....and idiotic
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

bigstunta101 said:
have you guys ever heard "you are the company you keep" or "aiding and abetting" or "accessory to...." bottom line t-mobile has their name branded on the phone and in the phone. they knew about this sh*t so they are just as responsible. trust me i've had my run in's with the law a couple of time to know how technical stuff like this gets.
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Click to collapse
All they did was slap their name on something HTC created. You can't tell me you actually hold T-Mo responsible for something they didn't engineer? If they knew about it and didn't like it what do you think HTC would have done? Gone to ATT or switched it to a CDMA radio... oh wait they already basically have a copy cat coming out for Verizon. HTC can deal without selling through T-Mo. They'll survive.
nighthawk626 said:
t-mobile knew what was in the phone when they received it and even before so why shouldn't they be held just as responsible. If my name and signature is on a product I sell and endorse then why shouldn't I be held responsible? Its common sense
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
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You're common sense misleads you.
If you think T-Mo really has ANY influence over HTC you are mistaken. HTC sells through all 4 of the major carriers. They would just take their "G2" somewhere else. Blame the person that engineered the phone not the carrier to prints their name on it and throws a SIM card in it.
gaalaagaa said:
Its wrong. As soon as you buy something and becomes yours nobody should tell you how to use it or what to use it for. If I buy a phone to wipe my ass that shouldn't be tmobiles bussines. All they should be worried about is to sell phones and give services, but forbidding ppl to do what they want with what's theirs its very very wrong....and idiotic
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
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One problem...
There is a pesky thing called a warranty. If T-Mo/HTC provide a warranty, which they do, then they are obligated to fix/exchange a phone which cannot perform for its intended use. So if you bought a phone, rooted it, and royally F'ed it up because you are stupid and don't know what you are going you could then take it back to T-Mo and say it doesn't do what I bought it for and they would be obligated to fix it/provide a working one.
Consequently, to ensure as few people as possible root it they locked it down with this read-only NAND. They are protecting their arse.
Do I agree with it? No but I understand why they do what they do.
Warranty exchanges costs HTC money... so they want to ensure that as few warranty claims as possible are related to idiots doing something they shouldn't be or don't comprehend what they are doing.
It's a money game... nothing more nothing less.

@superfly u must work for tmobile and they must pay you good. Tmobile just cares about their damn money and sales. This ain't volunteer work for hurricane HTC. They are paid to sell the damn phones. Nobody put a gun to their head and told them to sell it. They are in it all the way even if all they did was slap their name on it. It officially states "hey I'm endorsing this product and all it comes with" endorsement comes with being held equally responsible. Just like in elections whatever one person in the party does that messes things up could ruin the whole party therefore everyone is held responsible even if they were on vacation when it happened. Here in the military that I'm in, its called accountability. There's no way of arguing your way out of something you are in ties with because it obviously has your imprints all over it. Simple as that
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

My dear brown nose friend Superfly:
IF tmobile cant handle that then they should close the company. Im sorry. I do as i please with what i paid for.Warranty only covers some things "which most of the time covers nothing" If i decide to wipe my ass with it then warranty wont cover it, if i decide to root it and brick it warranty wont cover it as simple as that...but then again i should do as i please with what is mine. We all know they could care less about you effin up your phone, all they want is being able to control what kind of os you got and bla bla bla only for sales porpuses.

When T-mo put thier name on it, they take all responsibility that comes with it.

First off, the article is trying to put blame on google... I just want to know how they cam e around to that. It feels like such a biased article. And how come there's no mention of Apple's practices? Or mentions of RIM? On top of that, it's already been said that this "rootkit" is bunked. Security measures are for the safety of the phone, usually. Why do they need to lock out the phone? You can cause a lot of havoc on the network with root access. (in fact, I kinda remember reading about an app that did just that when installed on rooted phones) It's in the interest of the customers to actually provide these security features. Just because we, as the technically inclined, get it, doesn't mean the average user should be punished.

nighthawk626 said:
@superfly u must work for tmobile and they must pay you good.
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I work for a public accounting firm and I'm a CPA... want to try again?
nighthawk626 said:
Tmobile just cares about their damn money and sales. This ain't volunteer work for hurricane HTC. They are paid to sell the damn phones.
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They make their money providing service for the phones they sell...
nighthawk626 said:
Nobody put a gun to their head and told them to sell it. They are in it all the way even if all they did was slap their name on it.
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This is just silly. T-Mo might exchange handsets but all the costs end up back on HTC depending on their agreement.
nighthawk626 said:
It officially states "hey I'm endorsing this product and all it comes with" endorsement comes with being held equally responsible.
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Again, do you think they had any part in the dev of the phone?
nighthawk626 said:
Just like in elections whatever one person in the party does that messes things up could ruin the whole party therefore everyone is held responsible even if they were on vacation when it happened. Here in the military that I'm in, its called accountability. There's no way of arguing your way out of something you are in ties with because it obviously has your imprints all over it. Simple as that
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
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Really? it's that simple?
So does Verizon, T-Mo, AT&T and Sprint take the fall for the Galaxy S debacle? They all have the same issue and all the customers are pissed off for the same reason so it is the carrier's fault? No, it is Samsung's fault. The fault lies with the person who made the phone and the software on the phone. Samsung should be held accountable for their failure of a phone... just like HTC should be held accountable if they are indeed in violation of this accord.
gaalaagaa said:
My dear brown nose friend Superfly:
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I have 0 loyalties to T-Mo. This is actually the first T-Mo phone I've owned. In the past 3 years I've moved from VZW to ATT to Sprint to VZW to T-Mo. I don't give a crap about any carrier specifically. Moving on.
gaalaagaa said:
IF tmobile cant handle that then they should close the company.
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Click to collapse
Handle what exactly?
gaalaagaa said:
Im sorry. I do as i please with what i paid for. Warranty only covers some things "which most of the time covers nothing" If i decide to wipe my ass with it then warranty wont cover it, if i decide to root it and brick it warranty wont cover it as simple as that...but then again i should do as i please with what is mine.
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And what happens when someone roots their phone and takes it back and whines and biotches until they get a replacement? People abuse the warranty system which is why things are so tight these days. I don't disagree with your position, I wish I could basically "one click root" on day 0. It would be sweet but that's not the way the world is.
gaalaagaa said:
We all know they could care less about you effin up your phone, all they want is being able to control what kind of os you got and bla bla bla only for sales porpuses.
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Only for sales purposes? There are 100 other reasons for control over the content besides "sales". What does "sales" even include?
asarousi said:
When T-mo put thier name on it, they take all responsibility that comes with it.
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Bull... I completely disagree with this. If their customizations caused problems then yes it is their fault but just because their put their name on it doesn't make it their fault. HTC designed, manufactured and marketed the phone... T-Mo printed their name on the glass and provided you with service. That's it.

LOL...another "class-action?" thread. Why not take the initiative and start the class action process if you are so curious about it? Speak to a lawyer, read up on the requirements for a class-action suit. I don't think anyone in a forum is gonna actually do that.

For all you people *****in about the locked nand Stop *****in about it yesh. Don't like it get another phone. There are plenty of other phones you can root and such.

Nobody is saying that tmobile made the phone but don't sit there and tell me that when they were picking this phone as part of their lineup, they didn't play with it or even look at it at all. Bottom line is they knew what was in the phone, I'm sure they were hoping the hinge issue wouldn't blow up like it did and also they knew about rooting and tethering some that's why I'm sure they continued to put it in their line up. It wasn't just tossed on their lap. They have phone testers and possibly hired rooters and devs to test how rootable this phone is. Either way they are accountable
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Bull crap. Ill buy the phone i want and root the phone i want because i want. Point blank

Nobody has forbidden anyone to root this phone. They made it hard to do and they put up a very clever stumbling block, but they didn't forbid it.
You can crack the phone open and look at every part of it, nobody will stop you, but they don't have to put a button on the side that makes it fall apart so that you can do it easily.
Similarly, if the community figures out the mechanism used to protect the ROM, then you can root it and install the software you want, but that doesn't mean the manufacturer or carrier are required to make it easy for you to do so.
The zdnet article cites the recent DMCA exclusion as meaning that we have the right to put whatever software we want on the phone. That exclusion provided no such right. It says that the federal courts will not prosecute us for defeating electronic protections in the phone - it doesn't make it illegal for the manufacturers to put those protections in the phone in the first place.
It's like a law limiting the penalties for jumping a fence - such a law wouldn't make fences themselves illegal. In fact, such a law would likely lead to fences that are harder to jump since the property owners could no longer rely on threat of prosecution to keep people from trying. Similarly, the DMCA exclusion is leading to electronic protections that are harder to crack because they are now the only line of defense.
Also, if they sold you a general computing device, but restricted the software you could put on it, then we would have a right to complain because a device isn't a very general computing device if it only runs canned software. Unfortunately, T-Mobile sold us a phone and the phone has to make calls primarily, and a smartphone further should provide some data access for the phone and, nowadays, the ability to install apps through a designed mechanism. There is nothing about the class of device that we were sold that implies the ability to run an arbitrary firmware or system software. They may not be able to stop us from doing that, but they don't have to allow it.
Consider that even in a general computing device, like a PC, there are parts that run software that you cannot modify. The firmware on DVD or Blu-Ray drives tends to be fairly locked down. Nobody cries fowl about that because the DVD/BR drive was sold for the purpose of reading (and sometimes writing) approved discs, not as a general computing device that will run whatever software you choose to load on it...

Gaalaagaa,
So with that logic, you can buy, let's say any car and then just decide that because "you want" or "you can" you'll remove the stock engine and drop in anything you want and then expect the manufacturer to cover it no matter what.
I'm all for root and using my G2 how I please, but that statement is moronic.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Uh oh for all of us who root noooooooooooo

If true...
http://phandroid.com/2011/04/04/developer-troubled-times-ahead-for-anyone-who-roots/
Oh and where's the tags that the mods add in on My threads about my girl blowing everyone lol I'm still waiting haaaaa update there it is

Oh nooooooeeessss!!!

Sigh.
This really makes me want to just use a laptop for a phone now.
At least I can do what I want with my laptop's data connection.

WTF!??
10char

f***

OK, this is the kinda stuff where either Google needs to get its balls back and *****-slap the carriers, or the FCC needs to actually step in to protect customers.
Either way, it's bull****. Screw Verizon and every other carrier that does this.

this is me forgetting to thank you.

drmacinyasha said:
OK, this is the kinda stuff where either Google needs to get its balls back and *****-slap the carriers, or the FCC needs to actually step in to protect customers.
Either way, it's bull****. Screw Verizon and every other carrier that does this.
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+1
I will never buy a phone from a carrier that implements this crap

drmacinyasha said:
ok, this is the kinda stuff where either google needs to get its balls back and *****-slap the carriers, or the fcc needs to actually step in to protect customers.
Either way, it's bull****. Screw verizon and every other carrier that does this.
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+2788786886

I agree this is total B.S.

lost_man10002 said:
+1
I will never buy a phone from a carrier that implements this crap
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No one should, the consumers run this together we can boycott any carrier who does this dictatorship bull****, I pledge I will not support any carrier who does this.
I'd rather take my evo and flash to cricket
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

drmacinyasha said:
OK, this is the kinda stuff where either Google needs to get its balls back and *****-slap the carriers, or the FCC needs to actually step in to protect customers.
Either way, it's bull****. Screw Verizon and every other carrier that does this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
This brought tears to my eyes.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App

Eff that. I will not buy a phone like that... If I have to go back to dumbphones... Then so be it.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App

It will never happen. The backlash would just be too much to handle.
And if manufacturers were to begin implementing these types of lockdowns, you know for a fact that they'll just be hacked around sooner or later.
Hello? We are discussing this on XDA... Home to undoubtedly the best group of white hat device hackers I've seen.
We all assume risk when rooting our devices and given the more open nature of Android, there's always the concern that some application will start stealing your data. It's a risk I'm willing to take and I'm sure most everyone else here as well.

mkhopper said:
It will never happen. The backlash would just be too much to handle.
And if manufacturers were to begin implementing these types of lockdowns, you know for a fact that they'll just be hacked around sooner or later.
Hello? We are discussing this on XDA... Home to undoubtedly the best group of white hat device hackers I've seen.
We all assume risk when rooting our devices and given the more open nature of Android, there's always the concern that some application will start stealing your data. It's a risk I'm willing to take and I'm sure most everyone else here as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's the problem with what you stated, the percentage of users rooted compared to non rooted, well are not even close, if they did lock out every new phone with master keys that we would never be able to figure out, well it could happen. Even if they did lose every rooted users support financially, they would still have more than 95 percent of their profiT, that's my fear, it'll hurt but not if sprint, Verizon, etc pays the difference or that kind of sort of thing. For example to make it easy, say all rooted user cause 600,000 in lost profit for sprint that they could have potentially gained, well HTC goes hey well lock the device but we want the difference from the users like us who will not purchase the phone. Anyway that's my take on it, enlighten me with your guys thoughts

It may be time to dust off my Razr.

Carriers get smart, devs get smarter......lets not jump the gun and worry about this nonsense now. I will enjoy my rooted phone for now. If this does go down those of you saying you will go to "dumbphones" are full of it. Even if these phones are locked down tighter than a 17 year old girls tuna you will still use it. I see the future as phones will be so fast why would you need to root; I love to root, I've been rooting ALL my phones since g1 and the sole purpose was the speed my phone up. Dual core phone no root ehh who cares. I will NOT use a free phone just because these phones in the future will possibly be locked. One can only hope this security doesn't see light but if it does I'm sure we'll be ok.

iitreatedii said:
Here's the problem with what you stated, the percentage of users rooted compared to non rooted, well are not even close, if they did lock out every new phone with master keys that we would never be able to figure out, well it could happen. Even if they did lose every rooted users support financially, they would still have more than 95 percent of their profiT, that's my fear, it'll hurt but not if sprint, Verizon, etc pays the difference or that kind of sort of thing. For example to make it easy, say all rooted user cause 600,000 in lost profit for sprint that they could have potentially gained, well HTC goes hey well lock the device but we want the difference from the users like us who will not purchase the phone. Anyway that's my take on it, enlighten me with your guys thoughts
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I've heard the "rooted users are the extreme minority" comment countless times, and all logic says it really must be true.
However, when I go to the market, click apps, then all applications, then click top paid, 3 of the top 5 require root. As an honest question, are my market results tailored for my usage history or is that the same "top paid" list everyone sees? If it is indeed the same for everyone then it becomes much harder to quantify rooted users being in the minority.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

dirkyd3rk said:
Carriers get smart, devs get smarter......lets not jump the gun and worry about this nonsense now. I will enjoy my rooted phone for now. If this does go down those of you saying you will go to "dumbphones" are full of it. Even if these phones are locked down tighter than a 17 year old girls tuna you will still use it. I see the future as phones will be so fast why would you need to root; I love to root, I've been rooting ALL my phones since g1 and the sole purpose was the speed my phone up. Dual core phone no root ehh who cares. I will NOT use a free phone just because these phones in the future will possibly be locked. One can only hope this security doesn't see light but if it does I'm sure we'll be ok.
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Completely agree about the smartphone part but do not about the master key part, it would take years like 75 - 100 if the key is properly secure for many and I mean many super computers to solve that algorithm...look at the droids, the only reason on a side note the ps3 master key was released was because the people who secured it messed up in the formula, and that still took 5 years..

the consequence would never be the same.

[Q] Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Stolen. (To prevent this happen again?)

Hello,
I got my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Stolen cant track it as i did not have tracking on it and battery was empty (gps is off)
I am getting tomorrow ne phone (same)
What options are out there.
I often forget phone to desk or to mall or to car etc.
how to prevent that happening again?
I have heard that Samsung Gear watch will vibrate when it will loose connection with my Galaxy Note 3
Can i set it up this way that my watch will also vibrate and make noise (also phone?) when i am too far with my wach from phone.
Can i change the distance?
This prevents me forgetting phone somewhere when i move elsewhere?
I did also find this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpQIhIky9o8
Or is there more options with similar devices?
As this proximo should exist also for android devices and not only for iphone

You could simply learn to be more responsible.
Forgetting your phone is your own fault. You're just going to have to condition yourself to not let the phone out of your hands. Done with it? Put it in your pocket.
Set up a Samsung account, you can use it to track your phone. As for gear options, no idea.
Send From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk

Android Device Manager can track a phone, lock, and wipe it. It can also ring it if misplaced. It's best not to lose it, of course. You can enable it from Google Settings.

First of all ShadowLea i have not blamed anyone else that my phone got stolen. And phone WAS in my pocket.
If you have no knowledge is there any other similar devise that i mentioned above why to comment?
You think that i don't feel bad already that having my phone stolen and now you come here to point to me with ur finger and ***** that it is my fault?
Thank you for your "friendly" attitude.
If you have no idea is there any similar device then why to comment?
I have no use of this samsung tracking as when phone is stolen they will turn off phone and replace sim card so tracking device is not an option or...?
Question was will the Samsung Gear wach alarm me when i am let say 1 meeter away from phone (alarm on phone via voice and same with wach)I have heard that watch will actually vibrate?
or is there any other device Similar to devices i mentioned above.
Maby some small sticker type alarm so when phone (that has sticker or... attached) and will be too far from me it will raise an alarm.

Bit too harsh dude. He was merely giving you advise.

Cocliosttro said:
Hello,
I got my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Stolen cant track it as i did not have tracking on it and battery was empty (gps is off)
I am getting tomorrow ne phone (same)
What options are out there.
I often forget phone to desk or to mall or to car etc.
how to prevent that happening again?
I have heard that Samsung Gear watch will vibrate when it will loose connection with my Galaxy Note 3
Can i set it up this way that my watch will also vibrate and make noise (also phone?) when i am too far with my wach from phone.
Can i change the distance?
This prevents me forgetting phone somewhere when i move elsewhere?
I did also find this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpQIhIky9o8
Or is there more options with similar devices?
As this proximo should exist also for android devices and not only for iphone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
next time just set up android manager and set up a samsung account and use the device tracking
or if you are rooted you can use cerberus app and put it in the system app with this
the only way to remove the app its by doing a full factory recovery
if they reset the phone the app will still be install https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lsdroid.cerberus

So if user puts in his own sim card i will still have full control over that phone?
Usually phones (those new ones) have this factory reset button inside. If they press that one it will not help? As thieve can`t remove that app?
I wanted myself to push that security even further. As idea is same as that kensington has.
So for example i am in a pub. Phone is in my pocket and i am on dance floor or waiting on bar line to buy my drink or i go to toilet and i place phone for second to sink or toilet paper holder i do my things and when i start to move away from the phone or someone is stealing phone while i do not notice (those thieves are skilled and can pump in to you and say oh sorry or what ever and next thing you notice is that phone is gone.) and it will raise an alarm on my phone and on that secondary device (key holder on my pocket etc) and both devises start to make loud noise so i will notice when something like this happens.
I start to leave toilet while phone is still on the sink system will alarm as i am away from phone for example 1 meeter or thive is walking away with my phone and it will raise an alarm.
That was the point.
I have searched for many devices that can actually be useful.
But thank you for your effort to help me.

Cocliosttro said:
So if user puts in his own sim card i will still have full control over that phone?
Usually phones (those new ones) have this factory reset button inside. If they press that one it will not help? As thieve can`t remove that app?
I wanted myself to push that security even further. As idea is same as that kensington has.
So for example i am in a pub. Phone is in my pocket and i am on dance floor or waiting on bar line to buy my drink or i go to toilet and i place phone for second to sink or toilet paper holder i do my things and when i start to move away from the phone or someone is stealing phone while i do not notice (those thieves are skilled and can pump in to you and say oh sorry or what ever and next thing you notice is that phone is gone.) and it will raise an alarm on my phone and on that secondary device (key holder on my pocket etc) and both devises start to make loud noise so i will notice when something like this happens.
I start to leave toilet while phone is still on the sink system will alarm as i am away from phone for example 1 meeter or thive is walking away with my phone and it will raise an alarm.
That was the point.
I have searched for many devices that can actually be useful.
But thank you for your effort to help me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A few Smart watches have these features, Galaxy Gear was mentioned earlier, apparently so does the HOT watch.... One of it's features is if you leave your phone behind when it gets a certain distance away(probably 10 meters as it's bluetooth) it will vibrate and let you know about it.
As was also stated google have Android device manager. You can locate, ring or wipe and lock your phone. As long as it can be contacted through mobile internet or wifi this will work... Read how here - http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39...t-android-device-with-android-device-manager/

Avast anti theft has geo-fencing feature and a whole load of other goodies too.

I did find this topic:
http://www.inc.com/john-brandon/5-start-ups-the-samsung-galaxy-gear-might-kill.html
they write there at point 4:
4. StickNFind
This phone finder system is pretty cool. There's a leash mode that sounds an alarm if you leave your stuff behind. The thing is, if the Galaxy Gear is a big seller, there's no reason to use the stickers if your main concern is losing a phone. The Gear watch will alert you when you leave your phone behind. It even locks the screen of your phone when you walk away and unlocks when you appear again. There are a bunch of other companies who make similar finders, including the Tile app. If they're not paying attention to the Gear now, they should.
As i understand i need to get sticker for my wach and it will raise an alarm when i am too far from my phone.

ShadowLea said:
You could simply learn to be more responsible.
Forgetting your phone is your own fault. You're just going to have to condition yourself to not let the phone out of your hands. Done with it? Put it in your pocket.
Set up a Samsung account, you can use it to track your phone. As for gear options, no idea.
Send From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
illusion786 said:
Bit too harsh dude. He was merely giving you advise.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let's be fair, the RESPONSE was Harsh, patronizing and judgmental.
Of course it's partly fault of the user. But when someone feels the needs to state the obvious, it's usually not to be informative, but rather to glout.
The BOLDED quote is not advice, but judgmental opinion at best, and a emotional jab at worse. Now granted, while certain things deserve judgment, call it what is is, instead of cowering away and calling it "advice".
At least, hopefully, you (OP) turned on Reactivation Lock, so they can't bypass your screen lock (surely you had one) by flashing your ROM.
Don't forget to call the service provider to blacklist the IMEI so it can't be sold on the black market. This will prevent future thefts.
Yes, StickNGo is a good alternative. But it doesn't look like they have a use case required for your reversed direction location. Worth noting is that Android 4.3's Bluetooth LE stack is still buggy enough to cause usability issues and also if you notice StickNGo's indiegogo, lots of people are getting replacement tags due to some problems.
The other recommendations here are great so far. :good:

Check out cerbus. It's cheap and nice
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

klau1 said:
Let's be fair, the RESPONSE was Harsh, patronizing and judgmental.
Of course it's partly fault of the user. But when someone feels the needs to state the obvious, it's usually not to be informative, but rather to glout.
The BOLDED quote is not advice, but judgmental opinion at best, and a emotional jab at worse. Now granted, while certain things deserve judgment, call it what is is, instead of cowering away and calling it "advice".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm a sociopath, I don't do 'emotional'.
Yes, it was harsh. Yes, it was patronizing. Yes, it was judgemental. It was meant to be exactly that. The only way to get the point across to these kinds of people is to stop. being. polite.
You teach children at age 4 to be mindful of their possessions and to not loose their valuables. If you still don't know how to do it when you're over 12, you deserve every bit of judgement.
This is a 1000 dollar phone, not a 5 cent pen.
Start treating it for the value it has, as opposed to a cheap bit of plastic.

Cocliosttro said:
Hello,
I got my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Stolen cant track it as i did not have tracking on it and battery was empty (gps is off)
I am getting tomorrow ne phone (same)
What options are out there.
I often forget phone to desk or to mall or to car etc.
how to prevent that happening again?
I have heard that Samsung Gear watch will vibrate when it will loose connection with my Galaxy Note 3
Can i set it up this way that my watch will also vibrate and make noise (also phone?) when i am too far with my wach from phone.
Can i change the distance?
This prevents me forgetting phone somewhere when i move elsewhere?
I did also find this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpQIhIky9o8
Or is there more options with similar devices?
As this proximo should exist also for android devices and not only for iphone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Future proof yourself. But there's a nice niche you can do to the old stolen phone... the imei on the phone... can be blacklisted... the serial on it... can be blacklisted... bam... whomever uses it is stuck with a tablet, nothing more.
Had a friend buy what was thought to be a good phone, seemed to have been blacklisted in another province in canada, and well he was sol. He blacklisted his proof of purchase s4 he traded for the other phone, but both him/them have equally good tablets now...
Blacklist it via your cell provider. See what they can do, as they still have the old information for your account.
- rmleloup

Good, I have little problem with people who have the decency of calling something what it is, instead of wasting time being disingenuous.
Here's the thing, few lessons are as memorable as those resulting from experience. If your goal was for him to learn his lesson, then I think our OP will have no problem remembering after paying $$$ for this lesson, even without the extraneous comments.
---------- Post added at 06:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:58 PM ----------
rmleloup said:
Future proof yourself. But there's a nice niche you can do to the old stolen phone... the imei on the phone... can be blacklisted... the serial on it... can be blacklisted... bam... whomever uses it is stuck with a tablet, nothing more.
Had a friend buy what was thought to be a good phone, seemed to have been blacklisted in another province in canada, and well he was sol. He blacklisted his proof of purchase s4 he traded for the other phone, but both him/them have equally good tablets now...
Blacklist it via your cell provider. See what they can do, as they still have the old information for your account.
- rmleloup
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is news to me, but it looks like you're right about the existence of a national blacklist. Until now, my understanding was that the Europian Union, was the only place with a national/international blacklist.
When did your "friend" lose his/her phone? Because it looks like the national blacklist was only VERY Recently implemented
READ: http://mobilesyrup.com/2013/09/30/cwta-and-its-partners-launch-gsm-blacklist-for-stolen-cellphones/
---------- Post added at 06:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:04 PM ----------
Looks like Bluetooth LE is just not properly implemented in Android. Bluetooth LE reliant products across the board are either having serious technical issues with Android based systems or have out right declined to support the operating system.
Found at Tilesapp FAQ:
No Android support?
At this time Android does not support Bluetooth 4.0. A few Android phone manufacturers have released BLE SDKs, however they are lacking in quality and stability. At Tile, the quality of our products is of utmost importance, and until there exists an Android platform that meets our quality standards, we will not be releasing a Tile app for Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

ShadowLea said:
I'm a sociopath, I don't do 'emotional'.
Yes, it was harsh. Yes, it was patronizing. Yes, it was judgemental. It was meant to be exactly that. The only way to get the point across to these kinds of people is to stop. being. polite.
You teach children at age 4 to be mindful of their possessions and to not loose their valuables. If you still don't know how to do it when you're over 12, you deserve every bit of judgement.
This is a 1000 dollar phone, not a 5 cent pen.
Start treating it for the value it has, as opposed to a cheap bit of plastic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have hoby named bodybuilding.
When i go to competition i have to lower my body carbon hydrate level to 6% less that level is MORE you will forget.
As it is food to brain.
I wont quit my hoby because i may loose my phone.
I will try to find solution and your comment did not help.
if somone is unfriendly to me i will reply same. How i will act will be reflected as how did you act.
With me it was always like this and it will be like this.
Other people who did comment here Thank you.
I will deffenetly look in to this Cerberus app.
I wonder will factory reset remove that.

klau1 said:
Let's be fair, the RESPONSE was Harsh, patronizing and judgmental.
Of course it's partly fault of the user. But when someone feels the needs to state the obvious, it's usually not to be informative, but rather to glout.
...
The other recommendations here are great so far. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To be fair you have to admit it's entirely the fault of the user. Neither the phone nor the sink did anything wrong and I'm pretty sure the pocket didn't play a part in it either.
I agree with Lea that he needs to condition himself NOT TO FORGET THINGS. I he forgot the $1000 phone he can just as easily forget his wallet or his keys, and they can't be traced or wiped.
And dude the hobby thing plays little part in it. I'm on a 1.500 cal lc paleo diet and never forget anything. As you taught your body to burn fat and gain muscle, teach your brain to remember the important things.

Buy Cerberus app from play store. It's probably the best in the category. Factory reset and changing sim cards won't remove it if you implant it as a system app. Tracking works from a PC or via sms. It has a lot of features like sounding alarm, taking picture, locking phone, wiping phone, tracking, recording sound, recording video etc. ..
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

IMEI fraud - any counter measures?

Majority of people selling phones over the Internet these days, take actual pictures of the device along with its box, and the IMEI is often visible. I m guessing there is a certain amount of fraud associated with IMEI - so what can be done to prevent such fraud? Assuming that someone's bought a device who's IMEI is revealed to someone with a malicious intend. E.g. phone gets blacklisted for no apparent reason. Any way for legitimate users to protect themselves in such scenarios?

jstoner said:
Majority of people selling phones over the Internet these days, take actual pictures of the device along with its box, and the IMEI is often visible. I m guessing there is a certain amount of fraud associated with IMEI - so what can be done to prevent such fraud? Assuming that someone's bought a device who's IMEI is revealed to someone with a malicious intend. E.g. phone gets blacklisted for no apparent reason. Any way for legitimate users to protect themselves in such scenarios?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maybe try only buying from people who dont do stupid things like that and maybe try
http://imei-number.com/imei-number-lookup/

-PiLoT- said:
maybe try only buying from people who dont do stupid things like that and maybe try
http://imei-number.com/imei-number-lookup/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just can't get round my head why would someone be so naive and post IMEIs like that. They could blur it out and mention something like 'clean IMEI'. No need to make it that easy for scammers!

OK - so there is this: http://www.checkmend.com/uk/
Might be useful running a check prior purchasing a new phone. Dunno if it actually works on brand new devices. But since IMEI fraud could also affect a new device, I don't see why not...