Q: Lost/stolen Apple Watch Dead But Still Showing Location

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Go back to my question Apple Watch User profile for user: msilvest1216 msilvest1216 Author User level: Level 1 29 points Lost/stolen Apple Watch dead but still showing location

My Apple Watch Series 5 has been lost for a couple of days, it’s definitely dead and hasn’t been powered on since the “Lost Mode” is still pending. However it seems to be updating locations, I have looked high and low over and over but I still can not find it, the locations it’s updating is where I have been. Is it possible that the Watch App is doing this updating and not my Apple Watch?

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Posted on Mar 1, 2022 6:06 PM

Me too (2509) Me too Me too (2509) Me too Reply Question marked as Top-ranking reply User profile for user: Tmccants1 Tmccants1 User level: Level 1 31 points

Posted on May 12, 2022 2:28 AM

As super stressful as this is, I just wanted to share my experience, in hopes that it may help someone else. When accessing "Find My" app from my iPhone, similar to most of you, I was very confused as to why my "dead" Apple Watch seemed to always be in the same location as my iPhone; yet, it was nowhere to be found. Concerned that this iOS's feature/app could somehow be sending me incorrect information, I decided to compare, both:

  1. The data obtained from iCloud.com's "Find My" feature, accessed via my Mac, to
  2. The data that I previously received from the "Find My" app, accessed via my iPhone

Surprisingly, the data from my Mac, DID NOT correspond to the information that was obtained from my iOS Device. Upon immediate accessing the iCloud.com's "Find My" feature via my Mac, I was able to see the "LAST KNOWN LOCATION" before my Apple Watch went dead/offline. Something I was unable to do with my iOS device and after reading the previous responses I now understand why.

In conclusion, what I learned from this entire fiasco is that, once an iPhone is disabled or id dead:

1."Find My" app installed on the watch's paired device, (i.e. iPhone) will be of NO USE.

  • Mainly, because once the device is disabled, the watch's location is then assumed to be wherever the "paired device" is; which may or may not be the watch's actual location. Therefore, once the watch is disabled, utilizing the "paired device" as a means to locate the watch, may only lead to further confusion because it will always appear as if the watch is with the "paired device" or at one of its most recent locations; dependent mostly on, factors such as, wifi eligibility.

2.Determining the last known location, prior to the device being disabled, may be achieved by accessing the iCloud.com's "Find My" feature; using a device that is NOT PAIRED with the Apple Watch. At least, this was my saving grace.

3.The "PING or Playing Sound" feature located in "Find My" DID NOT work, while trying to locate my disabled apple watch. However, once the watch was REBOOTED, the feature DID work.

As mentioned previously, this is a horrible design flaw, one that I hope is fixed with the newest update. Being that we have come to expect so much more from apple, it's highly frustrating when mishaps like this occurs. Hope you guys can find this info somewhat helpful.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply User profile for user: Tmccants1 Tmccants1 User level: Level 1 31 points

May 12, 2022 2:28 AM in response to msilvest1216

As super stressful as this is, I just wanted to share my experience, in hopes that it may help someone else. When accessing "Find My" app from my iPhone, similar to most of you, I was very confused as to why my "dead" Apple Watch seemed to always be in the same location as my iPhone; yet, it was nowhere to be found. Concerned that this iOS's feature/app could somehow be sending me incorrect information, I decided to compare, both:

  1. The data obtained from iCloud.com's "Find My" feature, accessed via my Mac, to
  2. The data that I previously received from the "Find My" app, accessed via my iPhone

Surprisingly, the data from my Mac, DID NOT correspond to the information that was obtained from my iOS Device. Upon immediate accessing the iCloud.com's "Find My" feature via my Mac, I was able to see the "LAST KNOWN LOCATION" before my Apple Watch went dead/offline. Something I was unable to do with my iOS device and after reading the previous responses I now understand why.

In conclusion, what I learned from this entire fiasco is that, once an iPhone is disabled or id dead:

1."Find My" app installed on the watch's paired device, (i.e. iPhone) will be of NO USE.

  • Mainly, because once the device is disabled, the watch's location is then assumed to be wherever the "paired device" is; which may or may not be the watch's actual location. Therefore, once the watch is disabled, utilizing the "paired device" as a means to locate the watch, may only lead to further confusion because it will always appear as if the watch is with the "paired device" or at one of its most recent locations; dependent mostly on, factors such as, wifi eligibility.

2.Determining the last known location, prior to the device being disabled, may be achieved by accessing the iCloud.com's "Find My" feature; using a device that is NOT PAIRED with the Apple Watch. At least, this was my saving grace.

3.The "PING or Playing Sound" feature located in "Find My" DID NOT work, while trying to locate my disabled apple watch. However, once the watch was REBOOTED, the feature DID work.

As mentioned previously, this is a horrible design flaw, one that I hope is fixed with the newest update. Being that we have come to expect so much more from apple, it's highly frustrating when mishaps like this occurs. Hope you guys can find this info somewhat helpful.

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User profile for user: ChrisJ4203 ChrisJ4203 User level: Level 10 236,297 points

Mar 2, 2022 2:55 PM in response to msilvest1216

Because when you look at Find My, your location displayed is your iPhone and Apple Watches. Once the Apple Watch's battery is dead, it will show your iPhone location due to the pairing of the devices. That is why it appears that it is following you. Until the Watch has its battery charged, it will not display its location again.

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User profile for user: Twiaste Twiaste User level: Level 1 8 points

Jul 15, 2022 4:09 AM in response to jackievanzant

Replied to the wrong person but I don’t care. I lost my SE watch when walking home from a really late restaurant dinner. I must have dropped it on the subway home or while walking home while being really tired and inattentive because in the morning I could not find the watch anywhere. My phone showed that the watch was home despite not being there. I tried to ping it multiple times and I could not hear anything. While traveling to other places and even other countries later, Find My constantly showed my watch’s location, which was following me? I grew some hope that my watch could actually be with me and I must have put it in a bag or whatever.

Then I found this. Now I can say that this is a really confusing and stupid bug. I wasted so much valuable time looking for my watch because I kept thinking it was with me. The watch’s location updated at random times from late at night to early morning. I flipped my backpack and suitcase looking for the thing, but could not find anything. I always thought that my watch could be in my backpack or a suitcase hidden away. I went here for research because I was getting desperate, and little did I know, the watch shows MY PHONE’S LOCATION instead of its location when is dead. I am dumbfounded. So much wasted time for a bug on Apple’s end. Guess there is no hope in finding my watch again soon. Probably lying in the streets somewhere.

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User profile for user: BMW14 BMW14 User level: Level 1 12 points

May 9, 2022 6:26 AM in response to martineza

No, don’t assume it’s where it says it is. It’s obviously dead and “find my watch “ won’t work. Mine was saying it was at the school I work in and when I went to run errands it was saying it was somewhere in that vicinity, when in actuality it was under my bed Dead. So don’t assume Anyone took it either. You can mark it as lost so the person (if it was stolen) can’t use it.

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User profile for user: helpfindmywatch helpfindmywatch User level: Level 1 8 points

Apr 18, 2022 11:33 AM in response to msilvest1216

Hi, I lost my watch a couple of days ago too. I spoke to an Apple specialist and they told me the updated location is inaccurate and linked to your iPhone because it's paired to your watch. This is super frustrating and confusing! If your watch doesn't have data, you will likely not know where it is unless whoever finds it can manage to connect to wifi. Best of luck–it would be more helpful if the last known location was visible

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User profile for user: peartv peartv User level: Level 1 8 points

May 1, 2022 2:17 PM in response to msilvest1216

Same experience - lost Apple Watch, saw updating locations, spent 8+ hours looking for it, only to realize that the locations were following my phone.

Terribly misleading, and costs people valuable time that they could have spent with their friends or family.

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User profile for user: maghana274 maghana274 User level: Level 1 8 points

May 7, 2022 4:04 AM in response to msilvest1216

I lost my watch 3 days ago and after reading this stopped turning my house up and down for it. I actually went to an exercise class and the stopped n the middle of it to look for the **** Watch thinking someone who has it is in the same gym as me. I looked like a crazy person going every corner and playing sound on my phone and asking around. The whole staff got involved and was looking for it. It’s ridiculous that Apple would allow such a bug to not be disclosed. I even went to Marshal lost and found as I was there earlier and of course my dead Apple Watch is showing the location of my paired phone. Not realizing thsi was a bug.. I started to walk all through the shopping mall parking lost and even looked to random wrists to see if they are somehow wearing it. This is really not expected from an expensive Apple 7 series Watch. Ridiculous

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User profile for user: ChrisJ4203 ChrisJ4203 User level: Level 10 236,297 points

Mar 15, 2022 1:46 PM in response to Rsaunders52

Correct. Since your location services is based on the iPhone and Watch when they are working, since the Watch is no longer able to send a location, you will see where the iPhone is.

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User profile for user: UnableToFindUser UnableToFindUser User level: Level 1 12 points

Jun 19, 2022 6:01 PM in response to msilvest1216

I also have this problem! Apple Watch series 6 was stolen on a night out, the location updated to say it’s the other side of town. By the time I had contacted the police the battery had died and the watch location keeps saying wherever my iPhone is. I’ve even driven home to visit family and the location updated to say it traveled 4 hours away with me despite being nowhere near me

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User profile for user: radiorancher radiorancher User level: Level 1 8 points

Sep 7, 2022 11:57 AM in response to msilvest1216

If you only knew (and maybe you do -ugh!) how I have torn my car inside out, driven back to places I had been and so on and so on, only to read that I was tracking my cell phone! All I can say is wow, wow, wow...

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User profile for user: ChrisJ4203 ChrisJ4203 User level: Level 10 236,297 points

Jul 19, 2022 8:42 PM in response to taly114

Look for it the old fashioned way. Re-trace your steps and see if you find it. It cannot be tracked unless it is powered on and connected to the internet.

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User profile for user: christiannaths christiannaths User level: Level 1 9 points

May 17, 2022 11:37 AM in response to christiannaths

I found it!!! No thanks to FindMy. It somehow got stuffed into a drawer in a box with some other tech stuff. Not that the supporting evidence from this discussion thread wasn't enough, but now I can personally confirm how broken this FindMy feature is—it was indeed showing the location of my phone instead of the watch. Insanely frustrating.

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User profile for user: lbrownfi lbrownfi User level: Level 1 20 points

Mar 30, 2022 1:31 AM in response to msilvest1216

Pardon my frustration, but who designed this feature? I lost my series 7 weeks ago and have turned my car inside out because it seemed to be following me. At no point was it ever indicated that it was actually tracking my phone instead of the watch. I fail to see how this would be helpful in any way.

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User profile for user: Edmets Edmets User level: Level 1 8 points

Jun 10, 2022 12:22 PM in response to msilvest1216

This is an awful function. Like everyone else, I've been tearing my house apart because my watch keeps showing up as being in the house. But since the location services are tied to the phone, it's not actually my watch. In some software update they have to fix this!!!

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User profile for user: Tmccants1 Tmccants1 User level: Level 1 31 points

Sep 6, 2022 6:41 AM in response to taly114

  1. On another device, other than the one the Apple Watch is paired to, access "FindMy." I accessed "find my" from my Mac and was immediately able to see my watch's last known location, prior to dying.
  2. keep in mind that this only can be done once. When trying to Re-Access the same info for the second time, using my Mac again. Instead of showing me the actual last location, it showed that my watch was in the same location as the paired device, my iPhone; which of course was incorrect.
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