The theft recovery process

After completing the "track a missing device"(link) workflow, a few things must take place before any data will be recorded. 

1. The missing device must be connected to the internet
2. The missing device must be rebooted once
3. The theft recovery app must be downloaded load

Once these conditions have been met, the Theft Recovery report will populate data. This means that if the device is not connected to the internet, no data can be collected.

What is recorded

When a device is in theft recovery mode, the following types of data are collected: 

Screenshots: A screenshot is taken every time the user navigates to a new page. Each report will display the last 100 screenshots taken by the device. 

Geolocations: Theft Recovery uses a variety of data points to achieve the most accurate geolocation possible. The Google Location Services database allows Theft Recovery to achieve high-accuracy geolocation using a combination of WLAN AP-based location, IP location, and HTML 5 geolocation APIs. Under some circumstances, certain factors (like firewalls) may prevent High Accuracy Geolocation. However, even when the coordinates are sometimes off, the reported “accuracy” of that point will always be reliable.

User Info: When a user signs into a Gmail account, their name and email address will be recorded and stored in the Theft Recovery report under "User Detected." 

What is not recorded

Theft recovery does not use keylogger software, the webcam, or microphone.