Lost Iphone 4

[Somtamnication]

A friend of mine got drunk and she lost her phone. Anyways....

She did not have mobileme installed.

I searched all Apple forums, they all suggest mobile me.

All i want to do is have the serial number barred from being used in Thailand with all 3 networks.

Any ideas on how to do this? Apple was no help at all. No guidelines for locking the phone, or when it connects to an itunes account, to disable it automatically.

Thanks.

[nullx8]

you can wipe the phone (if you had mobileme) .. but there is no way to have a Service Provider barr the IMEI

technically this is possible (of course) . but there is moreless no way to get a barr like this in place ...

okay there is sure .. but it would cost you much more then the price of the iphone

[thrilled]

price ya pay when drinking

[nikster]

Since you don't have MobileMe - better move on with your life and get her a new iPhone.... or better still, a used one... a used 3GS in perfect condition can be had for 11k or so.

BTW with MobileMe you could also locate your iPhone, and track down where it is - wouldn't that be fun?!

Edited January 27, 2011 by nikster

[nikster]

Wow, one thing I didn't know: Find my iPhone is now a free service in iOS 4 - you don't need a MobileMe account!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/find-my-iphone/id376101648?mt=8

http://www.apple.com/iphone/find-my-iphone-setup/

This is pretty crazy. I just tried it - not only do you get a nice Google map with the exact location of the phone. You can also send a message to the phone - even if the phone sound is turned off, the message will show and play a very loud sound, too.

Clearly if someone wipes your phone, this capability will be gone. But if they're lazy and just replace the SIM card while leaving other settings intact, the service will still work. It's working over the network and tied to a mobileMe or iTunes account, rather than your SIM...

Edited January 27, 2011 by nikster

[Somtamnication]

As I stated earlier, she did not install the dang app. Unfortunately, there is no option, when signed in on itunes, to disable the phone, otherwise.

[lomatopo]

There are quite a few thefts/losses each day. I've been involved in several successful iPhone recoveries recently. They key is to establish contact ASAP, call the phone - have a Thai person do this for you - have them acknowledge loss and thank the called party for finding it. Offer 3,000 baht for return (assuming this is acceptable). (The first level of theft sales on an iPhone is ~ 1,500, usually within the first 24 hours.) After that it is usually a dead-drop at a hotel front-desk; you ask about an iPhone, show the money, then the phone is handed over. You could withdraw the money but this is not recommended.

There is no IMEI barring here, AFAIK. After ~ 24 hours the phone will be working its way through the resale market.

Edited January 27, 2011 by lomatopo

[nikster]

There are quite a few thefts/losses each day. I've been involved in several successful iPhone recoveries recently. They key is to establish contact ASAP, call the phone - have a Thai person do this for you - have them acknowledge loss and thank the called party for finding it. Offer 3,000 baht for return (assuming this is acceptable). (The first level of theft sales on an iPhone is ~ 1,500, usually within the first 24 hours.) After that it is usually a dead-drop at a hotel front-desk; you ask about an iPhone, show the money, then the phone is handed over. You could withdraw the money but this is not recommended.

There is no IMEI barring here, AFAIK. After ~ 24 hours the phone will be working its way through the resale market.

You seem to know a lot about this...good stuff... any idea what would happen to a stolen motorcycle helmet? Trying to find mine, it was stolen here in Pai yesterday night - I don't think it can have gotten very far, it's not like you can sell a helmet like this in a little town easily. I guess the thieves will sit on it for a while?

[KunMatt]

WHen you end up buying a replacement iPhone; install "DeviceLocator".

As well as telling you where the phone is, when the person who found/stole it turns it on it takes a photo of them from the front camera and emails it to you!