Martin Lewis Phone Security Code: Dial *#06# for IMEI Protection

If you’ve ever had your phone lifted, you know the sinking feeling of watching it disappear — along with every photo, payment app, and account locked inside. Financial expert Martin Lewis made a simple plea on his live ITV show: type one code into your phone right now, screenshot the result, and email it to yourself before anything happens. The idea is to give police and networks a fighting chance to shut down a stolen device for good.

IMEI digits: 15 · Universal dial code: *#06# · Martin Lewis advice date: 2025 · Top security risk: phone theft · Police recommendation: screenshot IMEI

Five key facts emerge across major security and financial outlets covering this topic.

What happens if I dial *#06#?

Typing *#06# into your phone’s dialer triggers a universal function present on virtually every smartphone made in the past two decades. The screen displays your IMEI — a unique 15-digit identifier assigned to that specific device (MoneySavingExpert). This code is not hidden behind settings or menus; it surfaces immediately when you dial the sequence and press call.

IMEI display details

The numbers shown will be labeled either “IMEI” or “IMEI1” among other identifiers on dual-SIM handsets. On an iPhone, the display works identically to Android — no special app required, no internet connection, no charge for the query itself.

Why screenshot it

A screenshot serves as your backup copy. If your phone vanishes, you can still give police and your network operator the exact identifier they need to flag the device. Without it, reporting a stolen phone relies on box serial numbers or carrier records that may not be handy in the moment (LADbible).

What is the Martin Lewis phone security code?

The code in question is *#06#, and Lewis has specifically urged viewers to screenshot the resulting display and email it to themselves. “Type into your phone *#06# and you’ll get what looks like a series of barcodes come up… screengrab them and email them to yourself because that’s the ID you’ll need if your phone’s nicked,” he said on ITV’s The Martin Lewis Money Show Live (LADbible).

Five-digit code explained

The sequence is five characters including the star and hash: an asterisk, the numerals zero and six, then a hash. It works regardless of whether you have a PIN set, a screen lock active, or a SIM card inserted — the IMEI query runs at the firmware level.

Origin from Money Show

Lewis shared this tip during a live broadcast segment focused on pre-emptive phone security. The advice appears to stem from his team’s ongoing work with consumer fraud prevention and aligns with MoneySavingExpert’s published 16-step guide for protecting mobile devices (MoneySavingExpert).

What does Martin Lewis warn mobile phone users to dial for theft protection?

Lewis is blunt: everyone with a smartphone should do this now. The warning came embedded in a broader segment about financial fraud and device security, where thieves who grab your phone may already have watched you enter your PIN before striking.

Live TV advice

“Everybody do this now. Type into your phone *#06#,” Lewis urged viewers directly during his Money Show Live broadcast (LADbible). The segment emphasized that once a thief has both your phone and your PIN, they can access banking apps, payment methods, and stored passwords almost immediately.

Steps after dialing

• Take a screenshot of the IMEI screen before dismissing it
• Email the screenshot to yourself or a trusted contact
• Store it in a password manager or cloud note you can access from any device
• Keep the screenshot accessible but not visible on your lock screen

How do I make my mobile phone secure?

Beyond IMEI storage, Lewis and MoneySavingExpert outline a layered approach to phone security. No single measure is foolproof, but combining several reduces the window a thief has to profit from your device.

General tips from police

Reporting a stolen phone immediately — and providing the IMEI — gives police and networks the tools to blacklist the device across all carriers in the UK. A blacklisted phone cannot connect to any network, stripping most of its resale value (MoneySavingExpert).

Beyond IMEI

• Set up biometrics (fingerprint or Face ID) on your phone and every banking app (LADbible)
• Use different PINs for your phone lock screen and banking apps (ITV via YouTube)
• Turn off lock screen previews for messages and 2FA codes (LADbible)
• Use Find My (Apple), SmartThings Find (Samsung), or Find My Device (Google) for remote location, lock, or wipe (MoneySavingExpert)
• Set a Screentime PIN on iPhone to hide Face ID and Find My settings from anyone who knows your lock PIN (MoneySavingExpert)
• Back up your phone regularly before enabling remote wipe — you cannot retrieve photos or contacts after wiping (MoneySavingExpert)

Can I test to see if my phone is hacked?

Hacking detection is a different concern from theft protection. While IMEI retrieval guards against device blacklisting, checking for unauthorized access requires other methods.

Secret codes overview

• *#06# — retrieves IMEI (universal, all phones)
• *#9900# — accesses system dump menu on some Android devices (varies by carrier and ROM)
• *#67# — checks call forwarding status when you don’t answer
• *#6# — displays call forwarding number or status on some devices
• *#4636# — Android diagnostic menu showing phone and SIM information

These codes are manufacturer utilities, not security scanners. They cannot detect malware or unauthorized access (MoneySavingExpert).

4636 and others

The *4636# code on Android exposes information like IMEI status, network type, and SIM state — useful for verifying your own device’s configuration, but not a hack detector. If you suspect compromise, the safest steps are changing passwords, reviewing account activity, and running a full factory reset after backing up.

Martin Lewis phone security: step-by-step guide

Putting Lewis’ advice into practice takes under two minutes. Here is the complete sequence, with platform-specific notes where iPhone and Android differ.

1. Open your phone’s dialer — the app you use to make regular calls
2. Type *#06# — include the star, zero, six, and hash with no spaces
3. Press call — your IMEI number(s) appear on screen
4. Screenshot the display — use your phone’s screenshot shortcut (button combo or gesture)
5. Email the image to yourself — or save it to a notes app accessible from any device
6. Repeat if you have a dual-SIM phone — each SIM has a separate IMEI; document both
7. Set up biometrics — enable fingerprint or Face ID on your phone and all banking apps
8. Configure Find My — enable Apple’s Find My, Samsung’s SmartThings Find, or Google’s Find My Device now, while you still have the phone
9. Set different PINs — use one PIN for the lock screen and a separate one for banking apps
10. Disable lock screen previews — hide message content and 2FA codes from the lock screen
11. Back up regularly — cloud backups protect your data before any remote wipe

If your phone is stolen, report it to police immediately and provide the IMEI screenshot. Your network operator can then flag the device across all UK carriers, preventing it from connecting to any network (MoneySavingExpert).

Confirmed vs unclear: what we know and what remains uncertain

Most core claims about *#06# are well-supported across multiple outlets, but some broader security statistics and enforcement details lack independent confirmation.

The implication is that while IMEI retrieval is universally reliable, the enforcement ecosystem around blacklisting depends on police and carrier cooperation that varies by region.

What experts say about phone security

“Type into your phone *#06# and you’ll get what looks like a series of barcodes come up… screengrab them and email them to yourself because ‘that’s the ID you’ll need if your phone’s nicked’.”

— Martin Lewis, financial expert and MoneySavingExpert founder (LADbible)

“Everybody do this now. Type into your phone *#06#.”

— Martin Lewis, financial expert (LADbible)

“Dial star #06 hash to get your IMEI image. Then screen grab and save it… if your phone were to be nicked, you give that to the police and they can block your handset.”

— Martin Lewis, financial expert (ITV via YouTube)

Lewis frames this as basic self-preservation: a thief with your phone and your PIN has everything they need to drain accounts and max out credit lines within minutes. The IMEI screenshot buys you an extra lever — the ability to disable the device entirely even after it leaves your hands.

Bottom line

Martin Lewis is right to call this a five-second habit worth forming now. Your IMEI number is your device’s serial number in the eyes of police and networks — and without it on file, a stolen phone becomes an unlocked wallet in a stranger’s pocket. Screenshot it today, email it to yourself, and for anyone who relies on mobile banking or Apple Pay, the case for setting up biometrics and Find My before anything happens is equally urgent.

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As Martin Lewis IMEI warning on This Morning highlights, dialing *#06# lets users screenshot their phone’s unique identifier against theft.

Frequently asked questions