Chintan writes: Is there any way to activate “Find my iPhone” after I lost my device? Please help!
Hate to say this, Chintan, but if you lost your iPhone without ever activating the “Find my iPhone” feature, it’s too late now.
The trick is to turn on “Find my iPhone” before you need it—and whatever you do, don’t just assume it’s working because your iPhone is signed into your iCloud account.
So, ready to give “Find my iPhone” a quick test?
Let’s get started!
You can pinpoint a lost iPhone on the web once “Find my iPhone” is activated.
Note: This tip will also work on the iPad and iPod Touch.
- Tap Settings, iCloud, then make sure you iPhone is signed into iCloud. Haven’t signed up for iCloud yet? If not, just follow the prompts to set up an iCloud account directly on your iPhone.
- Scroll down the iCloud settings page until you get to the “Find my iPhone” setting, and make sure it’s switched on.
- Next, let’s check to see if”Find my iPhone” is actually working. Open a web browser on your Mac or PC, type “icloud.com” into the address bar, sign in, then click the “Find my iPhone” button. If all goes well, a map should appear with a green dot marking your iPhone’s location. (If iCloud couldn’t find your iPhone, make sure your handset has a cellular and/or Wi-Fi connection, then try again.)
- Click the Devices button in the top-left corner of the screen, then select your iPhone from the menu. Once you do, a window with more details and three buttons—”Play Sound,” “Lost Mode,” and “Erase iPhone”—will pop up on the screen.
- Click the “Lost Mode” button to remotely lock your iPhone and flash a “Please call me!” message on the screen, complete with a phone number where you can be reached, or click “Play Sound” to activate a piercing alert tone. If you really lose your iPhone and you’ve lost hope of ever getting it back, you can always click the “Erase iPhone” button as a last resort.
- Done testing? Click the “Lost Mode” button once more, then click the red “Stop Lost Mode” button on the following screen.
Looking for more iPhone tips? Click here!