By Michael Harlow · Published November 8, 2026 · About 6 minutes to read

Phone Theft in Lima and Cusco: What Travelers Should Know

Most trips to Peru start in Lima and head to Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. Your phone carries your boarding passes, train tickets, maps and photos the whole way, and it is also what street thieves want most. Here's what the latest figures show, how phones get taken, and what to do before, during and after a theft.

The numbers: high, but falling

Peru's telecom regulator, OSIPTEL, counts the phones that owners report stolen to their carriers. In 2025 that was 1,462,487 phones, down 6.8% from 1,569,126 in 2024 (El Peruano, January 2026). That works out to about 4,000 a day nationwide. The busiest hours were 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 7 p.m., and the busiest days were Monday, Saturday and Sunday.

Surveys add context. Peru's statistics agency, INEI, found that for every 100 people aged 15 and over in Lima and Callao, there were 11.0 victims of theft of money, a wallet or a phone in the previous 12 months (preliminary figures for the February to July 2026 survey period). The rate for urban Peru as a whole was 9.9.

The U.S. State Department rates Peru at Level 2, "exercise increased caution" (advisory of September 4, 2026), citing crime, terrorism, unrest and kidnapping. Its travel guidance says phone theft, pickpocketing and robbery are common. The city of Cusco and nearby sites, including the Sacred Valley, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu, are outside the areas it says not to visit.

How phones are taken in Lima

The UK government describes street crime, including muggings and thefts, as a significant problem in Lima, Cusco, Arequipa and other major cities (page updated November 2026). The patterns travelers run into most:

Snatches from the roadside. The UK advises travelers to avoid using a phone at the roadside, because motorbike riders may snatch it.
Grabs while you take photos. In February 2026, a visitor photographing colonial balconies a few meters from the Government Palace had his phone snatched from behind (Panamericana). Residents and shopkeepers told reporters such thefts are common on nearby streets, especially where visitors stop for pictures.
Fake taxis. The UK warns of robberies by criminals posing as taxi drivers, especially at Jorge Chávez International Airport and bus terminals, and advises against hailing taxis on the street.
Intercity buses. Armed robbers sometimes hold up provincial and intercity buses, the UK says, so use reputable companies.

Cusco

Hard numbers for Cusco are scarce. In 2024, the city's Tourism Police station was receiving about 20 complaints a month from visitors, and about 60% involved theft or robbery (Diario Correo, August 2024). The paper adds that many cases go unreported because visitors have to fly home.

The practical takeaway: the same habits that work in Lima apply in Cusco's busy plazas, markets and bus terminals.

Before you go: set up your phone

Turn on your phone's theft tools. On Android, turn on Find Hub and Google's theft protection features, including Theft Detection Lock and Remote Lock. Remote Lock needs a screen lock, an active SIM and a verified phone number. On iPhone, turn on Find My and Stolen Device Protection, which may already be on.
Write down your IMEI. Dial *#06# and keep the 15-digit number somewhere other than your phone. OSIPTEL's tool uses it to check whether a phone has been reported stolen.
Buying a Peruvian SIM? Peru blocks phones that aren't on the whitelist of its national phone registry, RENTESEG. OSIPTEL says that if you bought your phone abroad for personal use, you should go to your mobile operator to register it (June 2026). Ask when you buy the SIM.
Hide message previews on the lock screen, and save your bank's and carrier's phone numbers somewhere off the phone.
Consider an extra layer. A wrist strap or a third-party security app can help. On Android, with Thummer your thumb rests in an on-screen bubble; if it lifts, the phone locks within five seconds.

On the street

Step back from the curb before you check a map, ideally with a wall behind you.
Look up from the screen after a photo, and put the phone away before you walk on.
Book taxis through an app or your hotel rather than hailing one on the street, including at the airport.
Don't leave your phone on café tables in Miraflores, Barranco or Cusco's plazas.
Keep sight of your drink. The UK also warns about methanol-tainted alcohol in Peru and advises buying your own drinks.

If your phone is taken

Let it go. Don't resist, and don't chase. Both the UK and the U.S. governments advise not resisting attackers. Then, from a safe place and a borrowed phone:

Call for help if you're hurt or threatened. The National Police emergency line is 105. For medical emergencies, call 106 (SAMU). A single 911 line was in a test phase in Lima and Callao as of June 2026.
Lock the phone remotely with Find Hub or Remote Lock on Android, or Mark as Lost in Find My on iPhone. Apple advises not trying to recover a stolen device yourself.
Block your cards, then the line. OSIPTEL's order is to contact your bank first to block cards and digital wallets, then report the theft to your carrier right away (December 2025). From another line on the same carrier, dial 104 (Movistar) or 123 (Claro, Entel, Bitel). Otherwise call Movistar 0800 11800, Claro 0800 00123, Entel (01) 611 7777 or Bitel 930 123 123. On a U.S. or other foreign SIM, call your home carrier.
Confirm the block. A stolen phone's IMEI goes on RENTESEG's blacklist, which bars it from Peru's mobile networks. You can check it at checatuimei.osiptel.gob.pe.
Change passwords, starting with email, banking and payment apps. Our guide to how thieves drain bank apps explains why speed matters.
File a police report at the nearest police station (comisaría) as soon as you can; the UK advises reporting crimes to local police as soon as possible. For help with travel between regions, the UK points to Peru's iPerú information service.
If your passport was taken too, contact your country's embassy in Lima.

For the full checklist, see what to do in the first 10 minutes after your phone is snatched. Continuing south? Read our guides to motochorros in Latin America and Buenos Aires.

The bottom line

Peru's reported phone thefts fell in 2025, and OSIPTEL is blocking stolen and irregular phones on a large scale. A phone held out at the curb is still an easy target. Set up remote locking before you fly, keep the phone close in Lima and Cusco, and if it happens, let it go and work through the steps above.

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