What happens if a managed device is stolen and factory reset?

Factory Reset Protection, or FRP, is an Android feature. After a device is wiped without being released, Android requires the Google account that was set as protecting it before the device can be set up again. Skie ties it to the Skie organisation's admin account.

That is the mechanism behind the short answer. The person who has the device cannot use it after a reset because setup asks for a Google sign-in they do not have. The school does not have it either, and does not need it, because the school removes Skie through the dashboard before returning a device. Only Skie holds the sign-in.

Skie adds more layers in front of this. The reset button in Settings is blocked. Safe mode, developer options and adb are blocked. If any protection is switched off on a device, the dashboard raises a breach, and a device that goes silent after being marked lost shows its last seen time and trail. The built-in aim is to be tamper-proof, and if anything did get through, you are alerted immediately, down to the exact device.

For you, the practical points are these. Mark the device lost as soon as you know it is missing, so the trail and the evidence are recorded. Report to the police with the IMEI and serial. If the device reappears online after a reset, it may show up in the dashboard through its identity, which helps you see where it is. Do not rely on a promise that anything is impossible, because we do not make one.

Practical tip: when buying second hand tablets, remember that FRP also protects previous owners. Related: wipe or track, what a thief sees and the blog on preventing factory reset.

• Reset from Settings is blocked
• Factory Reset Protection is on
• Setup asks for the Skie organisation's sign-in
• Mark lost early and report with IMEI and serial