Did you stumble on a missing mobile phone in a toilet or in the back of a taxi? You must feel bad for the person as it happens to anybody these days. Knowing the right thing to do is to return it, this article explains how you can go about that.
Misplacing your mobile phone can feel like losing a part of you. Which is why most people always look to return it as soon as they can. But in our present generation of personal identification numbers, facial recognition and fingerprint locks, it is difficult to reach out to the owner of the device to return it.
Before you hand it over to the police though and hope it reaches whoever misplaced it, here are some things you can do to have it back.
You Might Also Want To Read- How To Use Amazon Fresh?
1. Look Out For Contact Information?
Some users see this problem coming and put their contact information somewhere on the phone. But it will not be instantly obvious when you check. David Wrissmann, a PR manager at Verizon said, “Some people put In Case of Emergency (I.C.E.) contact info on their lock screen, so they can be quickly reunited with their lost device.” iPhones and Android OS possess this feature but you will have to click Emergency on the device’s lock screen to view it. If an emergency contact is seen, call them and ask them to give the owner of the device your phone number.
“I’ve also seen people put a label on the inside of their phone case with contact information,” Weissmann continued.
2. Try The Mobile Phone’s Voice Assistant
If there isn’t any clear contact information on the device itself, you should be able to call with the assistance of the phone’s voice assistant. By default, several phones will let you speak to Siri from Apple, Google Assistant or Bixby from Samsung even if the device is locked. You can deactivate this feature, but lots of people will not do that for convenience sake.
On iPhone, press and hold the home button (or power button if the device is an iPhone X, Xr, or Xs.) On Samsung phones, press the Bixby button on the side. Or you can simply say “Hey Siri,” “Hey Google,” or “Hey Bixby” to be sure if the voice activation is turned on.
If you receive a reply, say “Call Dad” or anything identical – If luck is on your side, the device will make a call without you either even needing to unlock it, and you can salvage the situation.
3. Hand It Over To The Carrier Or Police
If the previous steps failed, then you will need some external assistance. Mr Weissman agrees. He said, “If you find a phone, and there are no clear markings my best advice is to turn it in to local police,” “If you find a Verizon phone, it can be brought into a nearby store where they will try to reunite it with its owner.”
AT&T and other carriers have identical policies. Check out the device’s screen to confirm its carrier. Even if it is quite complicated than a seamless “Hey Siri”, you are sure the smartphone will be going back to its owner.
You Might Also Want To Read- How To Use Google Voice?
