How To Track Phone Using Gmail

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In today’s technologically advanced world, tracking a phone has become quite easy. A very simple way of doing this is by using Gmail. Yes, you read it right! Gmail isn’t just for sending or receiving emails but also offers a feature for tracking phones. This can be extremely useful in case of misplacing or losing your phone. In this blog, we’ll guide you through the steps of how you can track a phone using Gmail.

Prerequisites

Before we get started, make sure the following prerequisites are in place:

  • The phone you wish to track should be linked to a Google account.
  • Location reporting and location history need to be activated on the phone.
  • The phone must be switched on for you to track it.

Tracking a Phone Using Gmail

After ensuring the prerequisites are met, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to your Gmail account.

    2. In this step, you have to log in to the Gmail account linked to the phone you want to track.

  2. Go to Google Maps.

    3. Next step calls for opening Google Maps. You can do this by clicking on the Google apps icon at the top right corner of the screen and selecting ‘Maps’.

  3. Click on the ‘Timeline’ option.

    4. You will find the ‘Timeline’ option on the left side menu in Google Maps. Click on it.

  4. Select the date.

    5. Now, select the exact date you want to track the phone for. The location history of the phone will be displayed.

Code Snippet

If you are more of a code lover who wants to try this programmatically, Google provides APIs which you can use:

Note: You will need the user’s consent to access their location data.

    const googleMapsClient = require('@google/maps').createClient({
        key: 'your API key here'
    });

    googleMapsClient.geolocate({
        consideredActivities: ['still', 'on_foot', 'in_vehicle', 'on_bicycle', 'running'],
    }, (err, response) => {
        if (err) {
            console.log(err);
        } else {
            console.log(response.json.results);
        }
    });

Conclusion

Using Gmail to track a phone is a simple and effective method. Always ensure to respect privacy and use this feature responsibly. It is intended to help you locate your device in case of loss or theft, not for tracking someone without their consent.