Several thousands of iPads get stolen every year. In fact, about eleven thousand or more devices were reported as stolen in New York City in the year 2012 alone. Unless and until you lose your device at home, there is not much that can be done about it, excepting going through every nook and corner of the house to look for it. If it gets stolen, you may, however, be out of luck, unless you can track it to get it back from the perpetrator of the crime.
Track it with “Find my iPhone”
Find my iPhone comes free with every Mac and iOS device. It allows you to track your iPad or iPhone if it gets stolen or lost. However, there is a limitation to it, in that it works only when the device is on and it has a signal. In case the thief, who stole your phone is smart enough to change the SIM card, turn your phone off or put it in “Airplane mode”, “Find my Phone” will not work. You should, however, give it a try since there is also a possibility that the thief may not be that smart. Here is how you should use it. Visit the site iCloud.com and then log on to it using your Apple ID information. You will find that there are many apps arranged in a fashion similar to the way buttons are arranged on your iPad. Click on the icon called “Find my Phone” and you would be guided to a full-screen map that indicate where all your mobile phone has been to. You could click on the option called “Devices” at the top and it will show you a view of all your Apple devices. Select the one that has been stolen and three options will be shown to you: Lost mode, Play sounds and Erase my iPad. Fiddle around with the options a bit before you can decide what to do.
Call the police and file a report
Not only should you call the police to file a report, but you should also use the location of the iPad that you have determined and let them know of it. If you do this, they will send out an officer with the information you have provided and possibly even retrieve your phone and catch the culprit. Under no circumstances should you follow the criminal on your own, as you do not know what they can do or what they are capable of. Let the police take care of your situation. Otherwise, there is very little the police can do if you are not aware of the location of your phone. However, filing a report can help while dealing with the insurance company or Apple.
Remotely erase your stolen iPad
You must be aware by now how to go to the Erase iPad option that you found earlier in the option called “Devices.” Use it to erase your iPad completely so that the criminal, who stole your phone, cannot access your personal information.
Call your phone carrier
Let your phone carrier know that your phone has been stolen and ask them to block your services or cancel your plan so that the perp, who stole your phone, cannot use your phone to make calls at your expense!
