topic Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem in Android

Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:03:32 GMT

I purchased a new Samsung Galaxy S111 a couple of months ago, all going well. I am in the process of trying to pass my old Samsung Galaxy GT19000 to my husband (this will be his first smartphone!). Before I could do this we needed to wipe the old data from the phone, and before we could do this, we were alerted to the fact that I had put a mobile tracker on the phone when I purchased it two years ago. You had to go through this step to do a factory reset. I had carefully written down the number, eight digits. No, it is not letters or a combination, only the numerical keyboard available for this.

The system will simply not recognise the numbers. I have a feeling that this is now going to cause us big problems. I have proof of purchase, etc. and apparently my options are: to pay a lot of money and get Samsung to flash the phone or a bit less to ask my more convenient phone shop to do the job. Is flashing the last resort?

Is there anything else that I could try? Cannot believe these numbers do not work to take us to the next stage, I am convinced these are the correct numbers and recorded in appropriate part of my manual. My D is now receiving text messages to say that her father has the phone and it has been located. Yes, its in our house, currently useless.

Any ideas would be very welcome. Thanks for reading my tale of woe. Very reluctant to install the mobile tracker onto my new phone after this.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:11:49 GMT

Something like this could always be someone looking to remove any security on a phone they don't own but I musy be honest your case seems genuine

Not sure what tracker you have installed, however you could always try and flash the phone yourself.

Samsung have software you can install (Kies I think?) which you can restore/reset/recover your phone.

Tried this?

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Bambino — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:18:29 GMT

You can try to do a factory reset. A look in your user manual should explain how to do it. If you don't have the manual any more you can probably Google it and find it.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:26:14 GMT

Can you not contact the company you purchased the software off to ask them how the code can be circumvented.

Or look at the faqs on their home page.

It does sound like you will have to flash the phone.

Hope you get sorted.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:26:55 GMT

Thanks, we were trying to do a factory reset ourselves but get blocked by this screen, we cannot get past it to do anything. Yes, we are genuine, I totally agree about the security issue but we do have proof of purchase, etc.

I have tried Kies in the past, painful experience but would be willing to try it again if it were a viable solution. What do we do, just log in and then take all the data off the phone, without reinstalling it? Would my husband's own sim card work in this phone then?

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:30:15 GMT

The tracker option was on the phone already, I did not install it.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Bambino — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:34:39 GMT

There is a member of the forum who is very knowledgeable about Samsungs. Hopefully he will see this thread and be able to help with a solution. Apart from that, you might want to try what BandofBrothers has suggested and contact the developer of the app that has locked you out to see if they can help.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 16:52:28 GMT

Thanks very much, I will keep an eye on the forum. Difficult to track (excuse the pun) down the developer as this was not an app but a pre-installed option where you ticked the box or left it blank. I am at a loss myself as I know what the numbers are but do not understand why they do not work. Its a pity that there is not an Administrator of the system who keeps a log of the nos. and can reset them, as they do for passwords on many sites, to be used in conjunction with memorable words, etc. for security. Just glad its not online banking....... I won't do this again.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 17:04:32 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks very much, I will keep an eye on the forum. Difficult to track (excuse the pun) down the developer as this was not an app but a pre-installed option where you ticked the box or left it blank. I am at a loss myself as I know what the numbers are but do not understand why they do not work. Its a pity that there is not an Administrator of the system who keeps a log of the nos. and can reset them, as they do for passwords on many sites, to be used in conjunction with memorable words, etc. for security. Just glad its not online banking....... I won't do this again.

Save yourself a lot of hassle and just restore the software.

http://www.samsung.com/us/support/faq/FAQ00048586/52928

The above will lt you do an emergency recovery, it will wipe everything.

BEst way if you are giving the phone to someone else.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Bambino — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 17:13:43 GMT

Good luck @Butterfingers. Hope you get this sorted. Let us know how you get on.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 17:15:07 GMT

@Bambino wrote:
@Anonymous luck @Anonymous. Hope you get this sorted. Let us know how you get on.

Ditto.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

aldaweb — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 17:17:35 GMT

If you find Kies painful you could try Odin instead.

see the guide here http://community.o2.co.uk/t5/Android-Devices-Samsung-HTC-Sony/HOW-TO-A-Guide-to-using-Odin/m-p/463464#M18334

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

MI5 — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 21:19:16 GMT

Right - first of all Kies will not help you, nor, I doubt will installing any more firmware as Odin does not wipe the phone. We need to understand what this tracker app is and how we can get round it so I need to know what exactly you did to set it up in the first place please.

You also said you've tried to do a factory reset, can you tell me the process you followed for this please?

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 22:19:41 GMT

No factory reset was enabled. Before we got to that screen we were supposed to put in an 8 digit code, to get us to the factory reset process. I could not perform factory reset because the process indicated to me that the tracker box was ticked and that system was live and ongoing. I did write the 8 digit code down. I must have done this as I created it, two years ago, in the page of the guide, which refers to "find/track, your mobile if its lost or stolen". I wish I had never bothered. So, the 8 digit code which I inputted was returned as "incorrect password" - no options or letters, just digits. I knew exactly what I had created because it means something to me and I had written it down.

The mobile tracker option for lost or stolen devices, was an option which was inbuilt by Samsung, the phone came with it pre-installed. I did not install an app. It resides in the security and privacy section of the settings options. The tracker system defo works as my daughter kept receiving texts to say that her father had inputted a different sim card - yes, he did, he was standing next to me and the phone was in our house. We had to remove his sim to stop the texts. I really do not want to have the phone flashed but am fearing that we actually have no option. We are not the kind of people who can crack the Enigma code. Logically, I can see that any Kies type of programme would not really solve the problem. It may wipe the data but as soon as a fresh sim was inserted the "lost and found" texts would start up again. I will sleep on it for a couple of days before flashing the phone as a last resort. There may be some very clever people out there who know how to solve this and I do admire them, they have created a great system to retrieve phones but I don't think I will risk this again. I can also appreciate that there are security issues - but it is just a teency bit irritating just now.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 05:20:28 GMT

Hi,

Well at least this security protocol is doing its job as its supposed to be.

As ive touched on earlier contact the maker of the software which it seems is Samsung.

http://www.samsung.com/uk/support/main/supportMain.do

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

MI5 — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 07:40:40 GMT

You need to just answer the questions I ask please... I am assuming you are trying to reset through the menu options....?
Can you try this for me.
1 - Turn off phone
2 - Hold Vol Up + Home together
3 - Keep holding the buttons and also press the power key.
4 - Hold all three for about 3 secs until you see a green android logo appear on screen, then let go.
This should take you into the bootloader. (hopefully).
You will see a menu on screen, one choice of which is "Factory reset/delete all user data".
Use the vol up/down key to highlight this option and press the power key.
Phone should reset.
Next choose the first line of the menu "reboot" and press power again.
Phone should restart in factory mode and you can set it up again as new.....

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 10:24:43 GMT

Thankyou - to everyone who tried to solve this. We have just tried the latest suggestion from MI5. We followed the steps religously and when we turned on the phone again, it went straight to the screen asking us to put in the tracker code nos. It would not let us circumvent this screen to do a factory reset. My husband took it to our local phone shop, explained the issue (with purchase of proof, etc) and husband said that the process took about 10 seconds and he was almost sure that it was the procedure we had just performed, suggested by MI5, without the blocking screen this time though.

So, there was a solution, it probably was the same as MI5 suggested but performed by an expert. The procedure was so simple, there was no charge, however my husband put something into their charity box.

Thank you all for having a go, it probably was the suggestion given by MI5, but done by the expert, which worked.

Result: I am happy, husband happy and so is the phone. I am not even going to look if the tracker is still on - it should have disappeared. I still do not know why the tracker code numbers did not work, I know they were correct. Beware.

Re: Mobile Tracking - Big Problem

MI5 — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 10:27:39 GMT

The main thing is you are sorted