The size and portability of smartphones and tablets is a big convenience factor - but it also means they can get lost or stolen much more easily. In addition to auto-locking your device to ensure your data can't be accessed, you can make use of your device's GPS capabilities to activate auto-tracking, which should make recovery a whole lot easier if you ever do lose it.
GPS locating software comes bundled with many devices, and others have it built in. It tracks the location of your device by using your IP address. Follow the appropriate instructions below to configure your mobile device(s) for tracking protection.
This free app has all the key features, including geolocation, remote alarm and remote wipe. Before you can use Find My iPhone, you need to enable it on each of your iOS devices and Mac computers. Find My iPhone requires iOS 5 or later (iOS 6 is required for Lost Mode), or OS X v10.7.2 or later.
Important: To see all your devices when you sign in to Find My iPhone, you need to set up each device with the same iCloud account information.
Set-up
On your device’s Home screen, tap Settings, then tap iCloud. If you’re asked to sign in, enter your Apple ID, or if you don’t have one, tap Get a Free Apple ID, then follow the instructions that appear.
Tap to turn on Find My iPhone (or Find My iPad or Find My iPod). When asked to confirm you want this option, tap On.
Sign in to icloud.com/find using your Apple ID (the one you use with iCloud).
Click Devices in the upper-left corner, and then select the device you want to locate.
In the My Devices list, the dot to the left of the device’s name indicates its status: A green dot means it’s online, and a gray dot means it’s offline.
If the device is online, its approximate location is shown on the map (it may take a few minutes). The green circle around the device indicates the area the device is located (the smaller the circle, the greater the accuracy).
Prey works across phones, laptops, tablets and computers. An open source product, its features include geolocation, snap-shots, screenshots and remote hide/wipe. Both free and premium versions are available.
Set-up
Go to www.preyproject.comand download the software.
Set up the Prey Configurator:
Choose recommended Pre + Control panel setting.
Choose New User for the reporting method setup.
On the next screen, provide the requested information about yourself and your device.
Log into www.preyproject.com to configure your settings (alarm, web camera, etc.)
