Sony SupportXperia 1

Article ID : SX073002 / Last Modified : 10/31/2024Print

How can I block or remotely wipe the content of an Xperia device if it is lost or stolen?

    To locate remotely, block, lock, or wipe your Xperia® device, you must have registered with a device management service and activated the phone or tablet in this service before the device was lost or stolen.

    You can take one of the following measures of precaution to safeguard your Xperia device and its content if it has been lost or stolen:

    • Sign up with Google's Find My Device service.
    • If your Xperia device is part of the IT environment of a business or organization, check with the IT administrator or IT department whether your device is already protected via a Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution.
    • Install a third-party MDM app from Google Play Store™. For example, several virus protection or security apps have anti-theft, remote locate, and device lock features.
    • Use your device's IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number to block the device.

    Find My Device

    Note: To use Find My Device, you must turn on your device, have an internet connection, and activate the location service.
    The Find My Device service may not be available in all countries or regions.

    If you have a Google™ account, the Find My Device web service can help you locate and secure your device if you ever lose it. You can:

    • Remotely locate the device on a map.
    • Sound an alert (even if the device is in silent mode) to find the device nearby or get someone's attention.
    • Remotely lock the device.
    • Make the device display your contact information to anyone who finds it.
    • Remotely clear the device's internal and external memory (SD card) as a last resort.

    Enable the Find My Device

    Note:

    • Xperia devices running Android™ 5.0 or higher have a security feature that locks the device if you try to remotely lock or erase a device using the Find My Device service. Therefore, you must remember your credentials for the Google account used when you activated the Find My Device service. You can't reactivate the device if you don't remember your Google™ account credentials.
    • If you don't remember your Google account name or password, you can recover them using the Google Account Recovery page. If you still can't reactivate your device, contact us. For Xperia E5, Xperia X series, and Xperia Z5 series devices, you must be aware that when you receive a new Google username or password, you can't use it to log in to and recover your device for 24 hours.
    • To verify that Find My Device can locate your device after you activate the service, go to Google Sign in and sign in using the Google account set up on your device.
    • If you use a device with multiple users, note that Find My Device is only available to the user logged in as the owner.

    • Android 10 or higher
      1. Find and tap Settings → Security → Find My Device.
      2. If you are activating the service for the first time, mark the checkbox to agree with the terms and conditions of using it, then tap Accept.
    • Android 8.0 or 9
      1. Find and tap Settings → Lock screen & security → Find My Device.
      2. If you activate the service for the first time, mark the checkbox to agree with the terms and conditions of using the Protection by my Xperia service, then tap Accept.
    • Android 7.0
      1. Find and tap Settings → Lock screen & security → Find My Device.
      2. If you are activating the service for the first time, mark the checkbox to agree with the terms and conditions of using it, then tap Accept.
    • Android 6.0
      1. Find and tap Settings → Lock screen & security → Find My Device.
      2. If you activate the service for the first time, mark the checkbox to agree with the terms and conditions of using the Protection by my Xperia service, then tap Accept.
      3. If prompted, sign in to your Google account or create a new one if you don't have one.
      4. Enable location services on your device if this function is not already enabled.
    • Android 5.0 or 5.1
      1. Find and tap Settings → Security → Protection by my Xperia → Activate.
      2. If you activate the service for the first time, mark the checkbox to agree with the terms and conditions of using the Protection by my Xperia service, then tap Accept.
      3. If prompted, sign in to your Google account or create a new one if you don't have one.
      4. Enable location services on your device if this function is not already enabled.
    • Android 4.2, 4.3, and 4.4
      1. Find and tap Settings → Security → my Xperia → Activate.
      2. Mark the checkbox, then tap Accept.

    Locate, lock, or erase your device

    1. Go to Google Sign in from any Internet-connected device.
    2. Sign in using the same Google or Sony Entertainment Network (SEN) account set up on your device.
    3. Select Locate to locate your device on a map.
    4. Select Sound alert to sound a warning to find the device nearby or get someone's attention.
    5. Select Lock to lock the device.
    6. Select Erase to erase the content on the device, including the content on the external memory card (SD card).

    Information about Xperia M4 Aqua, Xperia C4, Xperia C5 Ultra running Android 5.0 or 5.1 and Xperia Z3+ and Xperia Z4 Tablet running any Android version

    • Lockdown mode
      • Lockdown mode is a feature of the Protection by my Xperia service. It gets enabled when unusual activity is detected on your device. Once your device enters Lockdown mode, you must sign in to the Google account used to activate the Protection by my Xperia service to reactivate and recover your device.
      • To prevent your device from being used or sold by thieves, lockdown mode does the following:
        • Stops or disables all running applications.
        • Limits access to notifications.
        • Disables USB and Bluetooth® connections.
        • Blocks all outgoing calls and allows only emergency calls.
        • Connect incoming calls to voicemail, if available.

      Note: If you delete your Google account permanently via your Google Account Settings page, it becomes impossible to recover your device from Lockdown mode or deactivate the Protection by my Xperia service. If, for some reason, you delete your Google account in this way, you only have a limited amount of time in which to restore it.

    • Actions that trigger lockdown mode

      Note: If you don't want Lockdown mode triggered by any of the above actions or situations, you can deactivate the Protection by my Xperia service.

      • Lockdown mode is triggered in the following situations:
        • During a factory reset procedure.
        • When Xperia Companion is used to wipe out user data.
        • When the Google account used to activate Protection by my Xperia on your device gets removed from your device (but not permanently deleted).
        • When someone removes or tampers with security features on your device, for example, when someone tries to input the credentials for the Google account you've used to activate Protection by my Xperia on your device but fails more than three times in a row.
    • To recover the device from lockdown mode
      1. On the Lockdown screen, tap Authenticate.
      2. To complete the recovery procedure, sign in using the Google account to activate the Protection by my Xperia service.

      Note: Make sure you have a working internet connection, preferably over Wi-Fi, to limit data traffic charges when recovering your device from lockdown mode.