My kid’s phone got stolen at school and the police asked for the IMEI number which I have, but they don’t seem to be doing much with it. Is there any app or service I can use myself to locate it, or is IMEI tracking something only carriers and law enforcement can actually do?
No, there is no legitimate app or public service that lets you track a phone in real-time using just the IMEI number.
The IMEI is primarily used by carriers and law enforcement to block a phone from accessing networks or to request location data through official channels. Your best action is to formally report the IMEI as stolen to your mobile carrier—they can blacklist it, rendering the phone unusable on major networks. For actual location tracking, you would have needed a pre-installed service like Find My Device (Android) or Find My (iPhone) enabled before it was stolen.