Your stomach drops. You swear your smartphone was just in your pocket. You pat down your jacket and empty out your bag, but it’s not there. You retrace your steps to see if you dropped it, but it’s gone. With a feeling of dread, you realize that someone must’ve stolen it.
Unless you keep your smartphone locked in a vault, there is a chance that someone could come along and steal it from you. You can’t avoid smartphone theft, but you can avoid some of the consequences that come with it. You can stop the thief from accessing sensitive information available on the device, and you can come up with a budget-friendly replacement in a hurry.
Preparations that Can Protect Your Data
Securing Your Lockscreen
Your lockscreen will be your first line of defense against a thief. If they can’t get past your lockscreen, they can’t access your data.
Create a passcode, password or pattern to unlock your device. If you use a passcode or password, choose an option that won’t be easy for a stranger to guess, like “1234” or “password.” If you use a pattern, be sure to wipe down your screen often so that no one can decipher the pattern through your fingerprint smudges.
If your smartphone has additional security measures, like thumbprint unlocking or face ID, you should use them. The more obstacles to get inside your smartphone, the better.
Downloading Remote Locating Apps
Many smartphones come with remote locating apps. Android phones have Find My Device, and iPhones have Find My iPhone. These apps are primarily used to find the GPS locations of devices that have been misplaced by users.
However, you should never try to retrieve a stolen phone. This is dangerous. Do not use a remote locating app to confront a thief in hopes of getting your property back. Instead, you can use one of these apps to remotely lock your device, erase your data and reset the device.
Run Regular Backups
If you remotely erase the data on your smartphone, you’ll lose all of the photos, videos and messages on it. To make sure that you don’t permanently delete these precious files, you should backup your data. You’ll be able to access the content even after your phone goes missing.
Preparations to Replace Your Smartphone
Extended Warranties
Many extended warranties offer coverage for stolen or lost smartphones. While this may not cover the entire cost of the replacement, it will drastically reduce the final price. If you have the chance to opt into an extended warranty program, you might want to consider it.
Emergency Funds
An emergency fund is a collection of personal savings that you can rely on when urgent, unexpected expenses crop up. You could rely on this fund when your smartphone gets stolen and you need to get an affordable replacement right away.
If you don’t have an emergency fund already, you should start building one for yourself. You can use it for more situations than smartphone replacements. It will come in handy for urgent car repairs, home repairs, dentist appointments, prescriptions and more.
What if you don’t have enough savings? If you don’t have enough savings to replace your stolen smartphone, you could look into short term loans online as an alternative solution. As long as you meet the qualifications for a short-term loan, you can apply for one. Your application could get approved, giving you enough borrowed funds to manage your emergency expense in a short amount of time.
Losing your smartphone is bad enough. Take these precautions to make sure this bad situation doesn’t get any worse.
