[humyum]

I had read an article in the mumbai mirror, in which the lady had lost her phone called some higher up's at the police station, least expecting to get her phone back but she did. The police actually traced it down from the IEMI number and she got her phone back with all the data

Maybe u should try getting some police higher ups involved too. Its not all that difficult, If someone is using the phone/ sold to someone it can be traced.

[benbsb29]

ET : When my mobile was stolen in Hyderabad (at a movie theatre), the cops refused to file an FIR saying this is a trivial issue, and tracing the phone is impossible. I was under the same emotional stress which you face now, but the harsh reality is there is just nothing we can do, since the authorities refuse to co-operate!

They however issued me a statement along with seal to enable me to submit the same to the mobile operator to help me with getting a new SIM card on the same mobile number.

In a different scenario, some people who had visited my home in Kerala (where only my parents live currently) for business purposes ended up nicking a Nokia 1100 along with cheating my dad of some money. The local SI who was a young fellow took pity on my dad's plight and made all efforts to trace the phone as well as the people who were behind the crime. Although the robbers changed the SIM, the cops used the IMEI number of the phone to trace the area they were operating in, and narrowed down to catch them. When rounding them up from the locality, the scene resembled a scene from a movie. Needless to say, my dad got back both the money as well as the phone. As they say, where there is a will, there is a way.

All the best!

[Red Circle]

Have you already got your sim blocked? If no i would suggest not to block it for 4-5 days. If the driver or whoever took your phone is dumb enough to make a outgoing call then you can easily trace him out, You may loose few rupees though. Have done it few times and have recovered the phone aswell. No Cops No FIR.

[PatienceWins]

Originally Posted by extreme_torque

Guys,


I will speak to the transport people at my office today and also thinking of registering an FIR with the Police?

My question is will the police register my FIR keeping in mind I left my phone in the cab?
Can the FIR be filed as a mobile theft?
If the police refuse to file the FIR, what are other the other possible options that I can look at?
I am not too sure if the driver has the mobile or not, so not too sure if I should name him if I register the FIR?

Thanks

I went through the same ordeal recently as my wives mobile was stolen by the maid. As expected, she refused eventhough we discovered it missing since she left and noone else came to the house after she left.

First of all, get the sim blocked as soon as possible. Then get a FIR registered with police quoting IMEI number of your mobile. If you have not noted it down earlier, it would be there on your mobile bill or the box that came with your mobile. The police would expect something for filing the FIR. Then you can get a duplicate SIM by submitting a copy of the FIR to your nearby mobile operator service centre.

The police would be able to track the mobile using the IMEI number if the mobile phone is in use. I learnt from others that it requires frequent follow up with the police officer and paybacks. It does not make much sense for a low end mobile. The police officer with whom I got the FIR registered went on long leave. Even after he came back I was unable to contact him as he was not there in station whenever I went there - the station is on the way home from my office. I did not try after sometime as it was not worth the effort to get back a used mobile and there was not much data in my wives mobile. It would be better to collect the mobile number of the officer with whom you submit the FIR. In case you are unable to meet him other police men would just wash off their hands saying that you need to contact him for taking it forward.

All the Best!!

[matrix_ren]

I had lost my phone, with some memorable data too last year when my cycling pouch fell off my bike. All I had to do was block the SIM and submit a copy of previous bill statement(for address proof) and I got the new SIM from my provider. All in one day. I dont think you have to make up stories with your provider. atleast mine were a helpful lot. Maybe if you are looking for recovery of the phone you might need an FIR copy from the cops. I didnt expect mine to be found since I lost it at the worst location,outside the local RTO office(we all know what kind of touts hang around there)

As for the police, I did catch some news from a friend who lost his cell and got it thanks to the cops here in mumbai. And as someone said yes, there have been reading some recovery stories in the papers too. But that again depends on your local cops.

Hope you manage to gather up the lost data. goodluck.

[spadival]

Originally Posted by PatienceWins

I went through the same ordeal recently as my wives mobile was stolen by the maid.

OT: How many wives do you have? .. Hope your wife does not see this post.

On topic, I always put a password on the phone. i.e. not the sim lock password, password for the phone itself. That way, any would be thief will have to hard reset and wipe away the existing data before he/she can use it.

Dammit, nobody steals my phone :(.. so I can go and buy the new iPhone 3GS.

[kannan666]

Originally Posted by spadival

On topic, I always put a password on the phone. i.e. not the sim lock password, password for the phone itself. That way, any would be thief will have to hard reset and wipe away the existing data before he/she can use it.

+1 to that ! Have a security code for the SIM (PIN) and also have another one for the phone itself. SO, if the phone is switched off, you must provide the PIN to activate the SIM contents and you need to provide the phone security code everytime the SIM is changed else you cannot access any data on the phone unless a reset is done. Also goes without saying, do back up data on a regular basis on another device (PC/pendrive/memory card etc) to avoid loss of data

[Gansan]

1) Block the sim asap.

2) Filing an FIR may be difficult as the cops will try to dodge it based on jurisdiction. The only way will be to state you lost it in a specific area and file the FIR accordingly. The chances of finding the hand set by the IMEI number are zilch, unless it is a high-end one and you pull strings through the Commissioner's office etc. But do it any way, it is for your own protection in case the mobile was used by criminals / terrorists etc in the meantime, the call is traced to the mobile and the cops come visiting your home.

An alternative will be to lodge a e-complaint. That is what I did when I lost my hand set. The address for Chennai is cyberacchennai@sify.com. Find the one for your city and lodge your complaint, then store the copy for future use. This is for proof of complaint, nothing more. And a complaint or FIR is not necessary for getting a sim replaced.

3) Take a copy of this complaint and visit the area office of your service provider. Meet the legal in-charge or some other key personnel there. Request them to furnish the log of calls made from your sim, if any, after you lost the phone. Then call the numbers one by one and threaten that police will come visiting them if they don't tell you who called them from this phone, because it is a stolen one. May work if you are lucky. Did not work for me, though I threatened about seven people. All of them flatly denied receiving a call from my number.

I lost my phone in 2007 while travelling from Tuticorin to Chennai by bus. I changed 4 buses enroute as all straight buses were full, and the mobile was lost in the bus that dropped me at Madurai. I went through all the steps mentioned above. I went to my service provider's office in Chennai with a copy of the complaint and requested them to trace the phone. The official explained Indian cyber laws do not permit such an action, and it can be done only if the request comes from the police. Also, one will never know what other sim card is used in the phone, so the request has to go to all the SPs operating in the area.

Mine was a prepaid connection, and I learned the thief had made calls worth about Rs 275 in the meantime. I requested him to furnish a log of calls made after I lost the mobile. He said that too was not permitted, but offerred to orally read out the most called numbers, which I accepted.

[extreme_torque]

@thanks for the suggestions guys they are much appreciated.

My phone was a Nokia N82 and had contacts that I had accumulated for the past three years, some memorable video's of my journey to far off places in spiti valley in a fellow friends Safari and also pics from my visit to UK from september to january.
I am trying to pull some strings in the police hierarchy but I am not very hopeful of a positive outcome.

[greenh0rn]

ET, guys, please back up your phones, laptops etc on a monthly basis. I can't imagine you guys having access to all the equipment and still not bothering about it (how much time does it really take to connect your phone via cable/bluetooth to your PC)?

ET, your phone is definitely recoverable ONLY if police takes some interest in it. Try to bribe someone into filing a FIR and making some effort. I think an offer of 1k will get their *** moving. All the best and good luck mate!

[shankar.balan]

sympathies
i also use the same N82 - brilliant phone.
sorry about the loss

if the cab was a company cab then there ought not to be such a major issue getting it back - im sure the operator has a long term relationship with the company and thus, wont jeopardize this for a small item like a phone.

but i suggest seriously that you take regular backups of the data - that is an absolute necessity

Originally Posted by extreme_torque

@thanks for the suggestions guys they are much appreciated.

My phone was a Nokia N82 and had contacts that I had accumulated for the past three years, some memorable video's of my journey to far off places in spiti valley in a fellow friends Safari and also pics from my visit to UK from september to january.
I am trying to pull some strings in the police hierarchy but I am not very hopeful of a positive outcome.

[G-BoleroBoy]

Hey ET, sorry about your loss. But this reminds me of my dearest phone that i lost Motorola L9. All my contacts were in that and lot of data. All photos i took in my Leh trip was also in that. I had put that in airplane mode while riding - and am sure it had slipped from my pocket after I took couple of pics on tanglang la on return ride. That's it - it's gone. Don't know where in tanglang la it is corroding away to rust and junk.. But that way I lost all my pics and a nice phone with all my contacts. Just hoping your situation is better than mine ... :(

[musicmanaman]

Has happened to me as well in Delhi, while I was working for Wipro Spectramind, was not able to trace the phone even though I realised within 15 mins I had left it in the cab.

[finneyp]

ET, my gut feel is that cab driver has your mob!
If any other occupant had found your mob, they would have first asked the driver if it belongs to him etc.
I doubt anyone would keep the mob found in the cab just like that.

Have a sweet talk with the driver & tell him you'll give him a reward say 1k if he finds it...

[extreme_torque]

Originally Posted by finneyp

Have a sweet talk with the driver & tell him you'll give him a reward say 1k if he finds it...

I mean it when I say that I am ready to give him the amount of a new phone if he can return mine back but then thinking from his point of view, no matter what I say, giving the mobile back would be akin to admitting to the crime. I dont really think he would do that. I am gonna try this tonight if I get the same cab.