Database Users

just curious...

So, I work for sprint (a retail store) and get people everyday that "didnt put in or set up a gmail email address" (lol) when they set up their phones, but set up the lock screen and enter in the wrong combination and lock themselves out. All I can do is hard reset the phone to get them phone functionality back... Anyone know of a way, or program, that could get them into the phone? Just to make my life easier than saying "Yes, I can get you access to your phone, but you're gonna lose all your texts and contacts..." lol

Their contacts should be sync'ing to Google anyway... so tell them to get over themselves lol.
I remember finding a way to reset the pattern lock without doing too much fancy work (app) but can't recall it now. Will look into it again and see if I can remember what it was.

lol they dont know their gmail address because they set it up, created a new account so they could get into the market, and then forgot it lol....

Remove Pattern Lock This should help, tested and works.

CSAT be damned, that's when i decide to be a jerk to them. If you can't remember the email account you used, then maybe they deserve it just a little bit.

entropism said:
CSAT be damned, that's when i decide to be a jerk to them. If you can't remember the email account you used, then maybe they deserve it just a little bit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah when I was still at sprint, there were always a few people I was willing to take a zero for, usually the people who swore they woke up with a broken screen and don't know how it happened. But back on track, if you can get the sdk installed onto the tech laptop you should be able to do this in a matter of seconds and keep the morons happy.

JT, can I make a suggestion? Ham it up before you restore their device. Tell them it's "damn near impossible normally, but I'm VERY good at what I do, so let me at least try my best", and tell them it'll take at least 30-45 minutes. I used to do that with bricked Blackberries, since nobody knew how to go into DOS on the tech laptop and fix it with command line.
Your CSAT will skyrocket, even if you treat them like they're dumber than a bag of wet hammers.

we have 1 corporate store in our city (my store), and 1 in the next city (a half hour away, in good traffic).. Our store doesnt do tech support, at all lol... Strictly retail... we can troubleshoot, but that's about it. I think I will start bringing in my laptop though, just for these few people (had 3 or 4 the last week... first couple had usb debugging and stay awake checked, so I could still get the contacts off. the rest, hard reset lol)

entropism said:
CSAT be damned, that's when i decide to be a jerk to them. If you can't remember the email account you used, then maybe they deserve it just a little bit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if it is a tech issue we cant trouble shoot, we dont even pull up their account lol... but that's cause our store doesnt have techs lol

entropism said:
JT, can I make a suggestion? Ham it up before you restore their device. Tell them it's "damn near impossible normally, but I'm VERY good at what I do, so let me at least try my best", and tell them it'll take at least 30-45 minutes. I used to do that with bricked Blackberries, since nobody knew how to go into DOS on the tech laptop and fix it with command line.
Your CSAT will skyrocket, even if you treat them like they're dumber than a bag of wet hammers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the quickest way to get a high csat, I used to do that to unlock phones when people would forget their passcode... have to love cdma workshop!!

I'm advanced tech, and I'll bend over backwards for a customer with a real problem. But if they forgot their pattern lock, and dont know their own email adress, I have no sympathy. If there was an alternate method that was easier and took less time without them losing data, id still hard reset.

sirstanley said:
I'm advanced tech, and I'll bend over backwards for a customer with a real problem. But if they forgot their pattern lock, and dont know their own email adress, I have no sympathy. If there was an alternate method that was easier and took less time without them losing data, id still hard reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL...hahaha..
where do u work???

Sprint Advanced Tech. Escalations. If no one else can fix your issue when you call in, im the guy that calls you back.

HD2 StolenToday-No help

So, unfortunately on my way to work this morning at 5:30 am, while on the train my phone was grabbed out of my hand by a teenage boy and then her ran off the train ):
All i was doing was silencing the alarm, he timed it perfectly. SMDH
Well, i spent all AM calling toll free # to toll free #. T-Mobile/Microsoft/HTC.
What i do not understand is how NONE OF THEM were able to track the phone for numerous reasons (allegedly)
Esp. since i was unable to do it via. the Microsoft my phone website.
Also, what is the point of having to report it stolen and file a police report for the claim when I still have to pay the same thing I would if i was neglectful and lost/broke it....?

Oh sry one more question, why isnt the memory card covered if it came inside the phone?

That sucks! It sounds like the kid knew to pull the battery as soon as he got out of sight.
If he's smart, he'll probably leave the battery out for a few days, or only boot up the phone once in the early morning.
Without the battery to power the GPS, the different recovery methods won't work.
If the kid also flashes a new ROM right away, then myPhone will never find it. Not sure about HTC's method, which may include using the unique ID.
There's a cab floating around here somewhere which will email you if someone switches SIM cards on your phone, or if you send your number a special text. This only works if they don't flash a new ROM first though. And it's a little late for you

iSEX said:
Oh sry one more question, why isnt the memory card covered if it came inside the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Memory cards are an accessory and those are never covered
On the flip side of that, when your new phone arrives, it could very well have a new card in it anyway. Especially if they are loading them at the factory before packaging.

its no good to you now, but remotetracker can survive a hard reset if the sd card doesn't change, or be cooked in with your settings permanently, and it can cope with sim card being changed.
it also allows you to lock up the phone, wipe the card, show message on screen, get call and txt details, get location on cells when gps can't, recover any files you like, via email or even ftp. loads more, amazing piece of free software.

I wish i would have knew all of that ):
I havent even had this phone for a full month yet.
he is very bold though. smh he didnt even turn it off. me and someone called and he answered and had a whole convo! grrr
it really sucks that t-mobile cant blacklist the IMEIs like t.mobile does.
OH, AND ITS CURRENTLY BACKORDERED!!! Ugh when will it be over

Snarksneeze said:
That sucks! It sounds like the kid knew to pull the battery as soon as he got out of sight.
If he's smart, he'll probably leave the battery out for a few days, or only boot up the phone once in the early morning.
Without the battery to power the GPS, the different recovery methods won't work.
If the kid also flashes a new ROM right away, then myPhone will never find it. Not sure about HTC's method, which may include using the unique ID.
There's a cab floating around here somewhere which will email you if someone switches SIM cards on your phone, or if you send your number a special text. This only works if they don't flash a new ROM first though. And it's a little late for you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SMH. What upset me was that they didnt even attempt to track it. Esp. microsoft. i told them when online it wasnt letting me do so and they said its only an online feature and they cant help. like wth is CC for?
They treated it like it was lost although i had a police report.

taking the easy option. no one cares about anything today. lazy [email protected]$

iSEX said:
I wish i would have knew all of that ):
I havent even had this phone for a full month yet.
he is very bold though. smh he didnt even turn it off. me and someone called and he answered and had a whole convo! grrr
it really sucks that t-mobile cant blacklist the IMEIs like t.mobile does.
OH, AND ITS CURRENTLY BACKORDERED!!! Ugh when will it be over
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't believe he answered the phone!
Keep trying with myPhone and the second you get his position, send it to the cops!

UPDATE**
To make things worst, I woke up this morning only to check MMP, and I can see the contacts/pictures & texts that the person who has my phone are sending/saving!!! And yet Tmobile are still saying they cant track the phone number....B.U.L.L.S.H.*.T.
DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW LONG IT MIGHT BE ON BACKORDER??? ):

iSEX said:
UPDATE**
To make things worst, I woke up this morning only to check MMP, and I can see the contacts/pictures & texts that the person who has my phone are sending/saving!!! And yet Tmobile are still saying they cant track the phone number....B.U.L.L.S.H.*.T.
DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW LONG IT MIGHT BE ON BACKORDER??? ):
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If he is saving the pics the nit should be updating his postion, so it will tell you where he is.

hope ya harvesting numbers, i'd be harassing all his friends, and posting their number and his pics and such

zelendel said:
If he is saving the pics the nit should be updating his postion, so it will tell you where he is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
View your phone's last known location BETA
See your phone's location the last time it contacted My Phone.
We don't have a location. Find out why
It still keeps saying this. It wont tell me where she is located ):
It seems like a lost cause.
Im wondering why i can see this though, is it due to my email still being attached to the phone?

samsamuel said:
hope ya harvesting numbers, i'd be harassing all his friends, and posting their number and his pics and such
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ugh. I wish I was able to see the persons number who actually has the phone. smh i'm shocked it isnt letting me.

iSEX said:
Ugh. I wish I was able to see the persons number who actually has the phone. smh i'm shocked it isnt letting me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well he's still using your number right...? you said you were able to call and talk to him, so the phone won't know what his number is. However, I'd put money down on the fact that the very first number he called when he got the phone, was his own, so he could get your number off his phone's incoming call. Call the very first number that appears in your t-mobile call logs as happening after he stole it, and I'll bet the same guy (him) answers as when you called your number.
Either way, I would follow samsamuel's suggestion and start putting pressure on every single person in his contact list, or even put a post up on craigslist addressed "to everybody on this a$$hole's contact list, he stole my phone"...and post every single name in there, and whatever choice commentary you feel would help flush him out
Shoot, start posting every single one of his text messages online....especially the most private or embarassing ones for he and his friends. Watch his messaging activity too and I'm sure you'll spot and e-mail address or facebook/myspace account name, something you can use to smack him in the face with info....you may not know who he is, but you certainly have access to enough info about him to make him regret it.
I'm guessing at this point he still has no idea that you can see all that about him, so use your advantage here wisely....

sirphunkee said:
well he's still using your number right...? you said you were able to call and talk to him, so the phone won't know what his number is. However, I'd put money down on the fact that the very first number he called when he got the phone, was his own, so he could get your number off his phone's incoming call. Call the very first number that appears in your t-mobile call logs as happening after he stole it, and I'll bet the same guy (him) answers as when you called your number.
Either way, I would follow samsamuel's suggestion and start putting pressure on every single person in his contact list, or even put a post up on craigslist addressed "to everybody on this a$$hole's contact list, he stole my phone"...and post every single name in there, and whatever choice commentary you feel would help flush him out
Shoot, start posting every single one of his text messages online....especially the most private or embarassing ones for he and his friends. Watch his messaging activity too and I'm sure you'll spot and e-mail address or facebook/myspace account name, something you can use to smack him in the face with info....you may not know who he is, but you certainly have access to enough info about him to make him regret it.
I'm guessing at this point he still has no idea that you can see all that about him, so use your advantage here wisely....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was yesterday. Afterward i suspended my acct and he must have sold it to or gave it to a female b/c she is in the pictures and by the text language I can tell its a girl...
So as of ystrday after I cut the service off, the sim card has been changed to hers but TMO wont help smh.
But you gave me a great idea. i know 9/10 i wont receive my phone back but i can make the person with it extremely annoyed *runs to craigslist* LOL
TMOBILE should really think about using some of the features Sprint/Nextel and others use....

iSEX said:
That was yesterday. Afterward i suspended my acct and he must have sold it to or gave it to a female b/c she is in the pictures and by the text language I can tell its a girl...
So as of ystrday after I cut the service off, the sim card has been changed to hers but TMO wont help smh.
But you gave me a great idea. i know 9/10 i wont receive my phone back but i can make the person with it extremely annoyed *runs to craigslist* LOL
TMOBILE should really think about using some of the features Sprint/Nextel and others use....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ahhh gotcha. Ok well yeah then I think the best you can do is just be very crafty with how you use what you can see. I still feel confident that they have no idea that myphone is doing it's thing, so just don't tip that hand too soon I know I'd have a bit of perverse fun coming up with ways to take advantage of all that!
It's interesting that myphone still updates to your same account even with a new sim/number....I guess it makes sense, since you log into an msn account to use it, and it probably only cares what data there is to back up, not what phone number or carrier account it's tied to.
Even though the myphone site won't tell you where it is, do any of the other "now what?" (premium) services show as possible? It says you can wipe the phone remotely if they work, but you may lose the insight myphone is giving you for now. But, it may become the final option at some point
EDIT: I guarantee you that T-mobile has the ability to do more to locate the phone....but without a supoena in your hand, you may never benefit from that

if u use mircosoft myphone u can lock ur phone and locate it

wingtytn said:
if u use mircosoft myphone u can lock ur phone and locate it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately thats wasnt working. its said it couldnt locate.

QUESTION:
I was just in my Gmail and noticed they deleted a few non-important emails i received ystrday. i jusat changed my password on all of my accts. thats means the phone will pront the password to be updated on there and if she doesnt know it she wont be able to access it right???????

[Q] Necessity of a Lock Screen?

I'm aware of apps like NoLock which disable the Vibrants lock screens. I was thinking about it and is there really any reason to have a lock screen? Seems like it's just an added step and a potential waste of battery. Thoughts?

To make sure you don't mess **** up if you accidentally hit your power button in your pocket

Right, I was rocking them way back in the day when you could pocket dial your whole phonebook with hardware # buttons, but with the Vibrant I've never noticed messing with the hardware buttons just from it being in my pocket.

Well, actually there are a lot of benefits to having the lock screen.
- You could turn up your ringer in a situation where you need to have it on silent.
- Quickly control music without draining battery by going to the actual music app.
- Seeing what type of notifications you get without pulling out the entire UI.
There are added benefits to disabling the lock screen, but you will probably encounter enough problems to make it not worth it.

true, I hadn't considered the music aspect

How about the fact that it's a secuirty mechanism?

No need for it. It was one of the first things I disabled.
Here's why:
-Accidentally messing it in your pocket somehow? Even if you manage to hit the power button and make it come on, it won't do anything as the screen is activated through electricity of your fingers. That's how it works. Nothing in your pocket can make it do ANYTHING, even if its on. If you REACH in your pocket and its on, then yes, you can hit something.
-Music app. SUPER easy to switch music when you have no lock screen. Simply Hit power button and swipe away anywhere on teh screen to change a song. VERY VERY useful while driving and u can't afford to look at the screen.
-Easier to respond to texts. You don't need to unlock it to do stuff now. MUCH simplifies everything but notifications are especially convinient to deal with.
-ACTUALLY saves battery. Try it. No lock screen will net you NO loss in battery life and is likely to increase it as you won't go through a locking screen every time. You quickly develop a habit of turning it off by the power key when ur done with something and turning it back on when you need it. It's instant, quick, and saves on juice.
I don't know of a SINGLE reason to keep a lock screen except for aesthetics or if you want to prevent people using your phone (in which case its a passworded lockscreen). Those are the only 2 reasons really. . .

how about to check out the time, see missed calls or texts easily because sometime the notification bar is full of notifications, and it is a great way to check the time without people seeing what you have been using in your phone and also it turns off fast so you dont have to press the power button twice.
I wouldn't take it off only because I see more advantages than disadvantages.
Just my two cents.

Better not lose your phones. No lock makes it that much easier to grab your data, regardless if you report it and the phone becomes a brick. Think of all that stuff the person who found it would be able to do. Get a list of your contacts, find the last few places you visited, make calls, etc... An exposed phone would be an identity theives dream.
And just think... you could slow them down with a simple pattern lock. Ignorant not to use that layer.

The security feature is pretty meaningless to me. I'm not ultra scared of someone finding my phone and having my friends and my weed dealers phone numbers.

Lol @ TC
This thread is so pointless
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

SeanFloyd said:
The security feature is pretty meaningless to me. I'm not ultra scared of someone finding my phone and having my friends and my weed dealers phone numbers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay. Would you mind posting a copy of your contacts in this thread? Most likely not, unless of course you have zero respect for your contacts information, in which case you should let your friends know how wreckless you are being with their data.
The point is, you may not lose this phone or your next or the one after that. It is a fact that unless you take ownership of your information, you put yourself at risk of making details you consider private, public.

One word:
Children.
Without a lock screen, my kids would have done things to my phone that I can not even imagine. lol

thenotoriouspie said:
Lol @ TC
This thread is so pointless
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not entirely pointless. It provided a chance for you to be a prick

SeanFloyd said:
Not entirely pointless. It provided a chance for you to be a prick
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And for you a chance to come off as a complete moron. I guess not all is lost, eh?

Well, different strokes for different folks. I'm rarely ever more than 5 feet away from phone, so I don't worry too much about the security aspect. I do turn it on if I'm going out to a bar or club or something, but otherwise the lock screen just slows me down.

ipugh said:
One word:
Children.
Without a lock screen, my kids would have done things to my phone that I can not even imagine. lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
..... or just don't let your kids use your phone as a toy. The lock screen doesn't keep it from going in the toilet if the kid is very young.

The lock screen strikes me as feature-creep.
NoLock was the first non-rooting-related thing I installed.

[Q] Lost & Found t-mobile Hero in London

Hi all
It just happened that I find a t-mobile Hero on a bus 52 to Victoria Station (I got off at the Royal Albert Hall and I notice it just before I got off)
I'm thinking about call one of the contacts on the address book but the screen is locked.
I haven't got any calls from it, so I can tell anybody that that phone is lost.
I'm reluctant to go into a T-mobile store because maybe they just get the device and keep it for them without even notifying the owner.
What would be your best advice in order to give it back to its right owner before s/he block the mobile's IMEI?
Regards!

Better to call the carrier, they have all his/her info
Great that you are so honest +1
Sent from my HTC Hero using XDA App

melvie said:
Better to call the carrier, they have all his/her info
Great that you are so honest +1
Sent from my HTC Hero using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He does have a saint in his name.. I would call one of the contacts if you can get into the phone, ask them whos phone this is... ( or you could root it for him and return it, he would probably be happier)

nijnvy said:
He does have a saint in his name.. I would call one of the contacts if you can get into the phone, ask them whos phone this is... ( or you could root it for him and return it, he would probably be happier)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lmao. Yeah, send it back with flash working and oc'd to 800+, so it keeps their hands warm on cold November nights like now.
They usually block them straight away. Ring 'mum' or 'dad'. They're probably on shopping holiday from Croatia.
And it was all yellow...

Brings you back to that song ...
All I want for christ-mas is root (Oh dear)

It may be possible you could adb in and pull the contacts database and get home?
Not sure - i have never tried. But I really do respect your honesty on this!
/me tips hat!

spikey68 said:
Lmao. Yeah, send it back with flash working and oc'd to 800+, so it keeps their hands warm on cold November nights like now.
They usually block them straight away. Ring 'mum' or 'dad'. They're probably on shopping holiday from Croatia.
And it was all yellow...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how did you get to Croatia?

zolmajstor said:
how did you get to Croatia?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was a pleasant evening, I walked.
Hush...

This is the big failing of the pattern lock screen system... It stops malicious use, but also stops legitimate things like this.
I've always been in favour of setting a custom message on the lockscreen using CMParts, but this isn't a custom ROM (I presume).
What's worth a look is to try "adb devices" with the device connected. See if you can get it to show. This will only happen if the user has enabled USB debugging, which would suggest it could be rooted.
If it's rooted, it would be possible to retrieve enough info to contact the user. If it's not rooted, it's not going to let you get at anything...
I'm aware that any info here would help someone who had stolen a phone, so I'm not going to give away any of the tricks to get into the device by bypassing that screen.
Still, it's good to see some honest people about here... One suggestion. Remove the SIM, and put it into another device (non smartphone). See if there are any contacts on the SIM (presuming it's not PIN protected. If it is, you're stuffed from this respect, as some people might have used an older contract sim in the Hero as an upgrade phone, perhaps with a few phonebook entries you could try out?
Failing that, I'm not sure how else you could really do this You could go into the network's store, and give them the SIM, and ask them if they could get the owner to contact you, if you gave them an email address. They would probably be able to do that, as there would be no data protection issue.
HTH
P

captainstu72 said:
It may be possible you could adb in and pull the contacts database and get home?
Not sure - i have never tried. But I really do respect your honesty on this!
/me tips hat!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That will only work if rooted, since you can't access /data without root on the Hero.
If you could root the device, you could sort it easily. The trouble is that it's a bit iffy... If the OP PMs me, I will give him a few suggestions in private, as he's got a long history on XDA. I reckon I can get the contact info out the phone (just had an idea )
Hmmm... Necro fail Doh!

Take the sim card out and put it into another tmobile phone, as the contacts may be stored on there, i know i do to save the hastle when getting a new phone, or use a micro sd card reader check whats on the memory card there may be some contact info.

I am glad to know that there are honest people like you in this world..

Theft proofing your phone!

I've had my phone stolen more times than I'd like. Given the fact that I've had my phone stolen this many number of times may suggest to some that I'm careless. Well, that would be a correct assumption to make. However, I don't equate being careless with deserving to have my phone stolen by some low lying piece of koopa. Anyway, the last one was a Moto G and the thing that pissed me off was the fact that the device had achieved an equilibrium in all areas that are important; the right balance of applications, just the right battery time etc. It knew me and I knew it. We were familiar to each other and then it was ripped from my clawing hands, never to return again. At that very moment, I made a decision that never will I let another phone be stolen again (iA). So I decided to make my phone theft-proof, not theft-resistant but theft-proof. The phone in question is the Moto X.
This is how I did it. First you need the following:
- A handset whose battery cannot be removed (at least very easily like the Moto G/Nexus 5/Moto X)
- Root
- Xposed Framework
- Xposed Framework Gravitybox module
- Anti-theft app (the one that I use is cerberus https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lsdroid.cerberus&hl=en)
- Bringrr or any other bluetooth perimeter based tracker (optional but recommended)
It's a fairly straight forward procedure. I'll lay it out in steps.
Step 1:
- Buy a phone whose battery cannot be removed
Step 2:
- Root the phone
Step 3:
- Set a pattern or number lock on your phone.
Step 4:
- Install XposedFramework
Step 5:
- Download and install Gravitybox module from within the Xposedframework
Step 6:
Go into the Gravityox module from the app drawer, then go into "Power Tweaks" and then check the "Disable power menu on lockscreen" option. This ensures that when your phone is locked (assumption is that you keep your phone locked or secured), nobody can turn it off or lower the volume. This is crucial when it comes to theft. Usually when a thief steals a phone, the first thing he does is he turns it off or removes the battery or reduces the volume to zero, but if he can't do any of these then the thief has a tracker in his hands and he's in deep ****za.
Step 7:
- Install an anti-theft app. I recommend cerberus. It's very versatile and wholesome. I really like the fact that you can actually make it into a system app which means that even if the thief were to somehow turn off the phone and then turn it on again and crack your pass code or pattern lock and factory reset the phone from the settings, the cerberus app will still be there doing it's job of tracking your phone.
There's only one way of getting around this as far as I can tell but I don't think I'm going to tell you how. That would defeat the purpose of this little guide
Step 8:
- Get a bluetooth location trackr. I like bringrr. It seems to get better reviews than the others one floating out there. It's a bluetooth device that plugs into your car's cig lighter socket and connects to your phone's bluetooth. If you leave your phone in a cafe and come back to the car, the bringrr will warn you or alert you that your phone isn't with you. It also has small little tags which you can put in your wallet and then your wallet and your phone and your car, all can communicate with each other. So, it's a nice preventive measure.

Even if you disable the power menu you can just hold down the power button until it turns off.

True....but that's not true if you havent confirmed it yet.
Sent from my GT-I9295 using XDA Free mobile app

also if they have a pin they can eject the sim
than hold power til it shuts down
hold down and power get to recovery and wipe the phone
after that if they are really good change the imei and bam
cant track or black list it
i know imei is hard to change but i know it can be done

Alpha_wolf said:
also if they have a pin they can eject the sim
than hold power til it shuts down
hold down and power get to recovery and wipe the phone
after that if they are really good change the imei and bam
cant track or black list it
i know imei is hard to change but i know it can be done
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
holding down the power button does turn it off but you gotta keep your finger there for a while. and I'm betting that an opportunistic thief really won't have his wits about him to figure out why the power menu isn't showing up and might freak.
and yes! these are the two flaw in this plan, the removal of the sim. however, if they insert another sim into the phone, cerberus sends a message to the designated numbers. also, imei changing IS hard and can't be done on the fly so there's a window of opportunity between the theft of the phone and the subsequent IMEI change (if there is one) to trace and recover it.
Also wiping the phone won't remove cerberus. you'll have to flash a new rom to get rid of it. so they can change the imei and whatnot but you'll still be able to trace it once they've booted it back up.
however, it'll give you and your phone a fighting chance

mufakir said:
holding down the power button does turn it off but you gotta keep your finger there for a while. and I'm betting that an opportunistic thief really won't have his wits about him to figure out why the power menu isn't showing up and might freak.
and yes! these are the two flaw in this plan, the removal of the sim. however, if they insert another sim into the phone, cerberus sends a message to the designated numbers. also, imei changing IS hard and can't be done on the fly so there's a window of opportunity between the theft of the phone and the subsequent IMEI change (if there is one) to trace and recover it.
Also wiping the phone won't remove cerberus. you'll have to flash a new rom to get rid of it. so they can change the imei and whatnot but you'll still be able to trace it once they've booted it back up.
however, it'll give you and your phone a fighting chance
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i agree with you i was just throwing those out there cause there are people like us that use their power for evil lol

mufakir said:
I've had my phone stolen more times than I'd like. Given the fact that I've had my phone stolen this many number of times may suggest to some that I'm careless. Well, that would be a correct assumption to make. However, I don't equate being careless with deserving to have my phone stolen by some low lying piece of koopa. Anyway, the last one was a Moto G and the thing that pissed me off was the fact that the device had achieved an equilibrium in all areas that are important; the right balance of applications, just the right battery time etc. It knew me and I knew it. We were familiar to each other and then it was ripped from my clawing hands, never to return again. At that very moment, I made a decision that never will I let another phone be stolen again (iA). So I decided to make my phone theft-proof, not theft-resistant but theft-proof. The phone in question is the Moto X.
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Just out of curiosity how many phones have been stolen from you? And how were they stolen? Maybe there's something that you change to not get your phone stolen.

mawells787 said:
Just out of curiosity how many phones have been stolen from you? And how were they stolen? Maybe there's something that you change to not get your phone stolen.
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Well the first phone was Iphone. The very first Iphone. It was stolen from my car while I was sitting in it. Happens a lot where I am; Pakistan. I was waiting for the light to turn green at a signal when this guy showed up on the passenger side door, and in what seemed like a flash, opened the door (which unfortunately was not locked), snatched the phone (which was lying on the passenger seat), ran around the car and on to the other side of the road where there was a guy on a bike (who I had not noticed before) revving it. The thief got on to the bike and they were gone. I had in the meanwhile only gotten out of the car and managed to shout out an expletive but it was too late by then. The phone was gone.
Ever since, I keep my car doors locked at all times.
The 2nd phone was also stolen from my car while it was parked in my garage. Probably the driver. It was a Nokia.
The 3rd phone was the Moto G. Went to this cafe to get some ice cream for wife and kid. Rush hour traffic in the cafe. Some seedy types were at the counter as well and I was wearing baggy clothes and got pick pocketed. Didn't feel nothing. Last known location of the phone was the cafe according to Life360.

mufakir said:
Well the first phone was Iphone. The very first Iphone. It was stolen from my car while I was sitting in it. Happens a lot where I am; Pakistan. I was waiting for the light to turn green at a signal when this guy showed up on the passenger side door, and in what seemed like a flash, opened the door (which unfortunately was not locked), snatched the phone (which was lying on the passenger seat), ran around the car and on to the other side of the road where there was a guy on a bike (who I had not noticed before) revving it. The thief got on to the bike and they were gone. I had in the meanwhile only gotten out of the car and managed to shout out an expletive but it was too late by then. The phone was gone.
Ever since, I keep my car doors locked at all times.
The 2nd phone was also stolen from my car while it was parked in my garage. Probably the driver. It was a Nokia.
The 3rd phone was the Moto G. Went to this cafe to get some ice cream for wife and kid. Rush hour traffic in the cafe. Some seedy types were at the counter as well and I was wearing baggy clothes and got pick pocketed. Didn't feel nothing. Last known location of the phone was the cafe according to Life360.
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1. Sucks that people just walk up to cars and steal while you're in the car. But like you said windows and doors locked will help.
2. Sucks that people steal. But assholes work everywhere. But never leave your personal property unattended.
3. Keep your wallet and phone in front pockets its harder to pick pocket. Or wear pants that are not too baggy so that pick pockets cant easily get their hands in.
I'm not sure how crime is in Pakistan but it sounds worse than here in the states. But even if you can track someone, remember its not worth getting seriously hurt or worse over property.

I guess I'd add that another step no matter what theft prevention you have, is to make a backup. Once you find that great balance of perfect apps and configurations, take screen shots of your app drawer at the very least so you know what apps you had installed. Take screenshots of your home screen so you know what icons you had where for that instinctive muscle memory of unlocking and tapping email in the lower right without really looking or thinking about it.
I've never had a phone stolen, but I've bricked and wiped enough times to know that backups are important even if your phone doesn't get stolen.

carry AK47 in front seat of car, problem solved!

Turn in android device manager with location reporting. It will track your phone down for you.

fury683 said:
I guess I'd add that another step no matter what theft prevention you have, is to make a backup. Once you find that great balance of perfect apps and configurations, take screen shots of your app drawer at the very least so you know what apps you had installed. Take screenshots of your home screen so you know what icons you had where for that instinctive muscle memory of unlocking and tapping email in the lower right without really looking or thinking about it.
I've never had a phone stolen, but I've bricked and wiped enough times to know that backups are important even if your phone doesn't get stolen.
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yea, but it's such painstaking work man. gonna do that today.

mawells787 said:
1. Sucks that people just walk up to cars and steal while you're in the car. But like you said windows and doors locked will help.
2. Sucks that people steal. But assholes work everywhere. But never leave your personal property unattended.
3. Keep your wallet and phone in front pockets its harder to pick pocket. Or wear pants that are not too baggy so that pick pockets cant easily get their hands in.
I'm not sure how crime is in Pakistan but it sounds worse than here in the states. But even if you can track someone, remember its not worth getting seriously hurt or worse over property.
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Well, all I know about crime in the States is what I see in tv shows, but yea, it's everywhere. crime and criminals that is.

I prefer keeping my phone by my side at all times....to battery sucking theft solutions.
But to each their own!!
Good info here for sure! ?

In my opinion it's better to leave the phone without a pin because, if i were an average theft who doesn't know that much about phones, I'd just remove the accounts, the Sim card and apps. Maybe I would do a factory reset and with that I'd be happy so cerberus would survive.
Also I'd recommend you to hide cerberus from the drawer and make it only available from the dialer.
Sent from my Moto X using XDA Free mobile app

Does holding the power button for 8 seconds still turn off the device with the gravity box module disabling power? if someone could force the phone off then turning it off from the lock screen is the least of their worries.

treyf711 said:
Does holding the power button for 8 seconds still turn off the device with the gravity box module disabling power? if someone could force the phone off then turning it off from the lock screen is the least of their worries.
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I thought that just rebooted, similar to holding POWER and VOL DOWN for a while to simulate a battery pull on Moto devices.