Protect your personal data against theft

Minimize the impact of phone theft by protecting your data and your device with security features.

Important: You're using an older Android version. Some of these steps work only on Android 15 and up. Check your Android version.

Theft protection

Important:

Some of these steps only work on Android 10 and up. Learn how to check your Android version.
These features aren’t supported on Android Go devices, tablets and wearables. Support may also vary based on your smartphone device model.
To turn on these features on a supported device, the device must have a lock screen set. Learn how to set screen lock on an Android device.

To turn on Theft protection features:

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.

To manage features on a supported Android device, select this link.

Turn on Theft Detection Lock

Theft Detection Lock uses AI, your device’s motion sensors, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth to detect if someone unexpectedly takes your device and runs away. If Theft Detection Lock detects your device is taken from you, it automatically locks your device's screen to protect its content. For example, if someone grabs the phone out of your hand and they run, bike, or drive away, the Theft Detection Lock may activate.

Important:

When the device’s screen is locked, Theft Detection Lock is not active.
To limit interruptions during regular device use, Theft Detection Lock may not trigger when:
- Your device has either a stable Wi-Fi connection, Bluetooth connection, or both.
- If there were repeated locks in a short period of time.
To protect your sensitive data if your phone is stolen, Theft Detection Lock uses device sensors to identify theft attempts.
Certain normal day to day activities may have similar characteristics to a phone that has been abruptly taken. If your phone locks due to normal usage, just unlock and continue to use your device as usual. We will continue to improve the feature to minimize interruption to normal usage.

To turn on Theft Detection lock:

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.
Turn on Theft Detection Lock.
- If the setting for “Theft Detection Lock” is grayed out, your device doesn’t support this feature.

Turn on & use Remote Lock

If your device is lost or stolen, to quickly lock your screen, you can use Remote Lock with a verified phone number.

Important: To use Remote Lock, you must have:

A screen lock
An active SIM card on your device
Device with a verified phone number
Find My Device turned on
Your device online

If your device is offline when you send a lock screen request via Remote Lock, its screen locks automatically once it’s online. After your device's screen is locked remotely, it can only be unlocked locally with your screen lock. The device’s screen can be locked remotely twice in a 24-hour period.

To turn on Remote Lock:

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.
Tap Remote Lock.
Turn on Remote lock.
- To complete activation, you need a verified phone number.
- If your phone number isn’t verified:
  1. Tap Verify number.
  2. Turn on Automatically verify phone numbers.

If you lose your phone or suspect it was stolen:

Go to android.com/lock.
Enter your phone number.
Complete a reCaptcha challenge.
Ask for the device to be locked.
- Shortly after, the phone screen locks.

Tip: To wipe, secure, or erase your device data remotely after you lock your device, you must sign in to Find My Device. Learn how to use Find My Device.

Turn on Offline Device Lock

After your device goes offline, Offline Device Lock automatically locks your device screen to protect your data. For example, if someone steals your phone and turns off the internet to prevent you from finding it with Find My Device, your device locks after a short period of being used offline.

Important:

Your phone must be unlocked when it loses internet connectivity.
The screen can be locked twice in a 24-hour period.

To turn on Offline Device Lock:

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.
Turn on Offline Device Lock.

Turn on Identity Check

To verify your identity, Identity Check requires biometrics and other safeguards. Your identity gets verified when you perform sensitive actions on your device or make changes to your Google Account outside trusted places.

Important: Only devices that support class 3 biometrics have Identity Check. If the "theft protection" settings page doesn’t list Identity Check, your device doesn't support it.

Sensitive actions that require biometric authentication

Biometric authentication is required to:

Access saved passwords and passkeys with Google Password Manager.
Autofill passwords in apps from Google Password Manager, except in Chrome.
Change screen lock, like PIN, pattern, and password.
Change biometrics, like Fingerprint or Face Unlock.
Run a factory reset.
Turn off Find My Device.
Turn off any theft protection features.
View trusted places.
Turn off Identity Check.
Set up a new device with your current device.
Add or remove a Google Account.
Access Developer options.

Tip: You can continue to use PIN, pattern or passwords for private space, multi-users mode, autofill payments in apps, and password and payments autofill in Chrome.

Google Account protections

To add extra security to Google Accounts, you can use Identity Check. This makes it harder for an unauthorized person to take over any Google Account signed in on this device.

When "Identity Check" is on, you’ll need biometrics to:

Change your password from account settings or through "Forgot password."
Add or change recovery factors on the device.

To turn on Identity Check

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.
Tap Identity Check.
To activate:
1. Sign in to a Google Account.
2. Add a screen lock if you haven’t.
3. Add biometrics, like Fingerprint or Face Unlock.
4. Add your trusted places, like Home or Work.
5. Optional: To more easily recover your Google Account, verify your phone number.
6. After completion, tap Done.

To turn off Identity Check

Go to Settings .
Tap Google All services Theft protection.
Tap Identity Check.
Turn off Identity Check.
You’ll be asked to verify your identity.
- If you’re away from trusted places, you need to verify it’s you with biometrics or a Google Account.
- If you use a Google Account:
  1. To turn off "Identity Check," on your device, choose a Google Account.
  2. Confirm the Google Account’s password.
    - To find the option to use a Google Account password, tap Try another way.
- If you turn on 2-Step Verification for your Google Account, you’re required to present a second factor after you enter your Google Account password.