What is required for Find My iPhone to track or find my iPhone?
You must have previously configured the Find My iPhone service, Location Services must be enabled for Find My iPhone, the iPhone must be powered-on, the iPhone must be able to acquire a GPS signal OR location triangulation via cell-towers or Wi-Fi, and the iPhone must be in a 3G service area or be connected to Wi-Fi.
My iPhone was lost (or stolen) but I never set up an iCloud account or Find My iPhone – can I still track the location of my iPhone?
NO – Find my iPhone must be configured BEFORE your iPhone or device gets lost or stolen
My iPhone was lost (or stolen) but location services was turned off – can I track my iPhone or enable location services remotely?
NO – Find My iPhone relies on location services. There is no way to turn on location services remotely
My iPhone was lost (or stolen) but I never setup an iCloud account or Find My iPhone – can I remotely activate tracking?
NO – Find My iPhone must be configured before your iPhone becomes lost or stolen
If my iPhone is stolen and the thief disables Find My iPhone or erases/restores/wipes the iPhone, can it still be tracked?
NO – Once the Find My iPhone service or Location Services is disabled or if the iPhone/iPod touch/iPad is erased, it is no longer trackable by you
If the thief removes the SIM card, can my iPhone still be tracked?
YES – If the iPhone is able to connect to W-Fi, even without a SIM card, iCloud can still locate it.
If the battery dies on my lost or stolen iPhone or if the dirty-thief turns the iPhone off, can the iPhone still be located or tracked?
NO – The iPhone must be powered-on to be tracked
If I did not setup Find My iPhone or if the thief disabled it, can the police/my provider still track my iPhone?
YES – The police and/or the telephone service provider can locate a phone (or, a 3G enabled iPad, not an iPod Touch) in emergency situations (they use their own services/systems, not Find My iPhone). Key word of that sentence is “emergency situation”.
I installed the Find My iPhone App on my iPhone so I can track it now right?
NO! Tracking or locating an iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch is done via the Find My iPhone service, not the Find My iPhone App. See this page to understand the differences: Find My iPhone App vs Service
My iPhone was lost or stolen and when I track it with Find My iPhone it says ‘offline’ – Why?
The phone might be turned off, out of range of Wi-Fi or 3G service, Find My iPhone or Location Services may have been disabled on the phone or the phone could have been wiped/erased/restored
Can I use the Find My iPhone service to track other phones or devices that aren’t iPhones?
Find My iPhone can be used to track iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches, iMacs, and MacBooks with OS X Lion or Mountain Lion
Does Find My iPhone display the history of the locations or track everywhere the iPhone has been?
Find My iPhone only displays the current location of the device by default. If you put the phone in “lost mode” if it becomes lost or stolen, you will then be able to view the history of the phone’s location.
Will the person/thief with the iphone be notified when I track the phone?
If enabled, location services may display a tiny indicator near the clock. The person can then look at the location settings screen and it will notify them if they are currently being located, or if they have been located within the previous 24 hours
How accurate is the location tracking of Find My iPhone?
Find My iPhone accuracy ranges from a few feet to a few miles. The size of the ‘blue location circle’ indicates the accuracy. A small pinpoint circle indicates more accuracy, a larger circle indicates less accuracy
Can I put Find My iPhone on my first Gen iPhone, my iPhone 3 or iPhone 3G?
NO – Find my iPhone only works on iPhone 3GS or newer (iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, 4S+), Newer iPod touches, all iPads, and iMacs/Macbooks running OS X Lion or newer
Someone stole my iPhone. Find My iPhone is showing me where the phone is, should I barge in and take back my phone?
NO! Seriously?! Find my iPhone is intended to help you locate a LOST phone i.e.; if you left it at a restaurant. Because the accuracy of Find My iPhone is not perfect, if you try confront a thief you run the risk of breaking down the wrong door, getting your ass-kicked or worse, a knife to the spleen or a bullet to the face. Use some common sense and leave confronting criminals to the professionals.
Adapted from http://grownupgeek.com/track-your-iphone-if-it-is-lost
