Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones

IFT provides tool to verify mobile phones reported as stolen

• Through IMEI consultation it may be checked if the device appears on the global list of stolen or lost mobile devices
• In the e-mail address ift.org.mx/imei the database will be available for consultation. They can only be two queries per user in a day
• To get the phone IMEI number the user may dial *#06# on her/his device, or find the code on a white label underneath the battery or through the configuration of the device

The Federal Telecommunications Institute (Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones, IFT) began operating on its website the tool that will allow mobile phone users to check if their device appears on the global list of stolen or lost, implementing the system of identity verification of mobile phone devices known as IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity System).

With this mechanism, the mobile phone users can check through the e-mail address ift.org.mx/imei whether a mobile device has been included in the global list of lost or stolen mobile devices before a purchase. The database the IMEI feeds from is updated with reports of more than 150 global operators, including 38 operators in 15 countries in Latin America.

The IMEI is a 14 or 15 digits code, prerecorded in mobile phones equipment that use GSM and / or UMTS technologies. This code is a fingerprint that is unique, allowing the identification of the device in a worldwide level.

For the IMEI number of the phone, the user must dial * # 06 # on her/his device, find the code on a white label underneath the battery of the device or through the configuration of the device.

To check whether a device has been reported as stolen or lost, the user must enter to the intended area for testing in the IFT website where the user must introduce the IMEI number of the terminal equipment and the searching for this information in the database will start automatically. The tool only works for users who search from Mexico and is limited to two consultations a day per user, identified by the IP source of the request.

The implementation of this system of verification of mobile devices led from the signing of a cooperation agreement concluded on 9^th February between the IFT and the Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA), where local mobile operators grouped in the National Association of Telecommunications of Mexico (Asociación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones de México, Anatel) belong to.

This tool seeks to discourage the theft of mobile phones, which often are the means used by criminals to conduct telephone extortion and other crimes.