Last month, Google officially launched its Find My Device network for Android, not to be confused with Apple's Find My Device network, of course. But in this case, similar names are appropriate because Google's services are nearly identical to Apple's and Tile's. Google's service taps into a wider network of Android devices to help you find a forgotten or lost device. Sound familiar?
How does Android's Find My Device work?
Find My Device lets you find the approximate location of any connected, compatible device using a global network of more than 1 billion Android devices. (Find My Device is currently only available in the United States and Canada, however.)
When you leave your connected devices behind, they can passively connect to any nearby Android phone via Bluetooth. The connection updates the device's location in the Find My Device network, giving you a clear idea of where the device is, at least where it was when Android users last came within Bluetooth range of it (about 30 feet). If you own a Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Pro, this feature will work even if your device is offline. If your phone runs out of battery, you can still find it using Find My Device.
But it's not just other people's devices that can help you find your lost items: you can also use your personal devices to find other people. If you're close enough to your lost device, you'll see the Find Nearby option appear, which uses an on-screen radius to guide you directly to the device's location. Your Nest devices can also act as beacons for lost devices: If they're close enough to one of your Google smart home devices, they can also help you find your lost items.
Currently, Find My Device only works on Android phones and tablets, but Google will expand the network to support compatible Bluetooth devices starting in May. These include Bluetooth trackers from Pebblebee and Chipolo, and Google says companies such as Motorola, Jio and Eufy will produce compatible tags later this year. Google also lets you share items with other people, so you can share your TV remote with a friend who is house-sitting, or your keys with someone who's borrowing your car.
How secure is Find My Device?
You may have seen reports that Find My Device poses a security risk. Of course, the idea of all those Android devices sharing location data with each other sounds like the domain of stalkers and other bad actors. But the truth is, both Find My Device on Android and Find My Device on iOS are completely safe to use.
Google says that all location data, including aggregated device location reports, is end-to-end encrypted, so no one but you can see the location of your items, not even Google. This applies to people whose devices share their location with your items: their data is end-to-end encrypted, so you can't see that their device shared the location, and they can't see that they shared the location with yours. . The company even claims that if one of your devices can help find your lost item, it will ignore all aggregated location data and use your device as a tracker instead.
Google also says it won't start saving location information until it senses multiple devices around you, and limits the number of refreshes to minimize the risk of malicious real-time tracking. In other words, the feature is great for stationary objects, like keys left at a coffee shop, but it won't provide real-time updates if you leave those keys in the back of a taxi. Additionally, if you're near home and have your address tied to your Google account, your device won't participate in the crowdsourced location data used to target other devices.
Finally, Find My Device works with established anti-tracker protocols that both Android and iOS are part of. If your device detects a strange tracker, it will alert you and provide instructions on how to find and disable the tracker. In fact, Apple and Google recently introduced new standards for detecting trackers: Whether you use an iPhone or Android, the Find My service will help you find strange trackers that are following you.
How to use Find My Device
First, you'll need an Android device running at least Android 9 and the Find My Device app from the Play Store. Alternatively, you can log into the Find My Device site on your desktop.
If you're looking for your own device, you can click Continue , but if you're helping a friend, select "Log in as guest" and have your friend enter their credentials. Select the device you're looking for from here: You may need to confirm the device's PIN or provide your Google password. Once confirmed, this action will send a notification to the device.
You should now see your device on the map. You can choose to get directions to the device or, if you're close enough to the device, use the Find Nearby feature.
You have a few other options: You can choose to play a sound from your device, which will make it sound at maximum volume for five minutes (be careful with this one). You can also use security devices to lock your device with a PIN or password to ensure no one can access it: If you use this feature, you can leave a message for anyone who finds your device to help contact you.
Finally, if you can't find it, you can remove the device from your account.
How to turn off Find My Device
If you want to disable Find My Device for your Android device, it's easy to do. First, select the device for which you want to disable the feature, then open Settings > Security & Privacy > Find My Device . Disable Use Find My Device from here and your Android device will stop using the feature.
