How to find your IMEI number (and why to write it down now)
The IMEI is the handset’s own serial number, separate from your SIM and your phone number. Without it, a police report has very little to work with. Spend thirty seconds on this now and it is there when you need it.
On the phone you still have
Dial *#06# and it appears on screen. Screenshot it, then email the screenshot to yourself. A dual-SIM phone has two IMEIs; keep both.
On the box
The original packaging carries a barcode label with the IMEI printed under it. This is the one people still have years later.
On the receipt
Most Kenyan dealers print the IMEI on the receipt or the warranty card.
In your Google account
Sign in at your Google account’s device page from a computer. Registered Android devices are listed there, and the entry carries the identifiers Google holds for the handset.
After it is gone
If you never wrote it down, the box and the receipt are your remaining chances. This is the single most common reason a stolen-phone report stalls in Kenya.
More guides
Setting it up on your phone
Common questions
Is the IMEI the same as the serial number?
No. The serial number is the manufacturer’s own; the IMEI is the 15-digit number the mobile networks use to identify the handset.
Can an IMEI be changed?
It is illegal, and police in Kenya have arrested technicians for reflashing stolen handsets to alter them. It does happen, which is part of why a blocked IMEI is not a complete answer on its own.
Guard Eye is an Android app made in Kenya. Procedures on this page follow the national process — police OB number, IMEI, operator SIM block — and the details operators ask for do change, so confirm with yours. Back to Guard Eye