Can my stolen iPhone be used by someone else?

Was Find My enabled?

Open the Find My app. Choose the Devices tab or the Items tab. Select your missing device or item, then choose Play Sound. If your device is offline, it won't play a sound until it connects to a network.

Use the Find My app to locate a missing device or item

If Find My [device] was not turned ON before your device was lost or stolen, it can't be used to locate a device nor one can use the IMEI number for tracking a device. The best action would be to Change the Apple ID password and change the passwords for other internet accounts that were used on the device. This can include email accounts, Facebook, Twitter, etc...

Don'ts

If the device is removed from an account after it is erased, Activation Lock will be turned off. This allows another person to turn on and use the device.

An example of my iPhone 5 is given in the GIF below. There is no "Undo" after you remove it from your account.

Find IMEI & Serial No. of the Lost Device

1. If an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch is lost or stolen - Apple ...
2. Find the serial number or IMEI on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod ...

You may use a web browser to get the Serial Number and the IMEI Number. You cannot track using the IMEI number. but you may need it so keep it handy

Log in to https://appleid.apple.com with your Apple ID credentials. All your devices will be listed there. Click on any to get the details.

Do's, If you had enabled "Find My" before it was lost

• Mark As Lost.
• Erase your device. If your missing device is covered by AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss, you shouldn't erase your device. Instead, file a claim for your lost or stolen device.
• 

Beware of Phishing!

Be careful and be smart to --> Recognize and avoid phishing messages, phoney support calls ...

Note: Apple will never send you any info on Lost/Found iPhones. It (Phishing) may appear as the image given below.

Switched Off? Still traceable

Even if the iPhone is switched off it is findable, see the pic below.

Device Offline?

I see my device in Find My, but it's offline

If you see "Offline," "No location available," or "Location Services Off," your device might be offline for one of these reasons:

Don't see your device?

• You might not have Find My turned on.
• If you're using the Find My app, you can't see your device's location if more than 7 days have passed since its last location was sent to Apple.
• If you're using iCloud.com/find, you can't see your device's location if it's powered off, the battery has run out, or more than 24 hours has passed since its last location was sent to Apple.
• Learn how you can still protect your information.

What I’m trying to understand is if it’s possible to “jailbreak” an iPhone and use it

No, unless you remove the device from your account. If you do remove the phone from your account, this will allow the person who has the phone to set it up again as their own.

I’m wanting to understand what the value of what my phone is to anyone else.

The thief is looking for a sucker who will buy the phone, believing that someone or Apple will help them set up the phone as their own. We see multiple posts each day from people who have obviously bought a stolen phone and now want to know how to get it working so they can use it.

You probably already have this info:

If your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch is lost or stolen - Apple Support

Hello ~ I just wanted to say you made the right decision by not going to meet up with this person as indeed it is not worth it. The information by *Bob Timmons* explains the rest. Work through the link they posted for you if you haven’t already. Good luck and stay safe.

~Katana-San~

It's your call. If it were me, I would not bother to continue to track something that I knew would never be recovered.

My opinion.....worth about as much as you paid to view this page......Find My was not developed to recover phones that have been stolen. It's a tool to help find a phone that might be lost around the house or left at a friend's house or restaurant. The biggest use for Find My is probably from parents who want to keep tabs on where their kids might be at all hours, or kids tracking their friends.