Secret Android Codes to Unlock Hidden Information

March 17, 2024

Our Android phones are capable of doing certain things that we might never know of, and guess what? A lot of these hidden things are closer to you than you think.

Joseph Chisom Ofonagoro

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Our Android phones are capable of doing certain things that we might never know of, and guess what? A lot of these hidden things are closer to you than you think.

If you're a curious person like me, you might have tried exploring stuff on your phone, and sometimes get into trouble by modifying a technically irreversible function on your device, but at the same time, you might have discovered ‘gold mine’ as I call them.

Here, I'm going to be revealing to you some of the most hidden features and information on Android phones and the USSD codes for accessing them.

USSD stands for Unstructured Supplementary Service Data, and it is a means phone users use to communicate with service providers without using the Internet. These service providers can be ISPs, government and private agencies, and even phone manufacturers.

These secret codes are usually built into the phone by the manufacturer to help the phone user perform certain actions quickly.


The Top Android Secret Codes

*#06#

This is used to find your phone's IMEI and other information that can be used to identify your phone.
It's one of the most popular and is so popular that almost every phone user knows it. Note that this is not specific to only android phones.

##2222##

Used to Display FTA hardware version. An FTA is an acronym for Fault Tree Analysis, and it is a failure analysis method that checks for errors in the hardware and software caused by users. Knowing your FTA is crucial in understanding how your phone handles errors.

##44336##

This displays your phone's build time, allowing you to know how old your phone is.

##2663##

This tells you the version data of your touchscreen.

##3264##

This code is useful in checking your RAM version and type.

##232337#*#

This is an alternate way to view Bluetooth device address.

##232338##

Another alternative of displaying Wi-Fi network's MAC address


*#67#

Dialling this code would provide call forwarding information for your SIM and phone.

*31#

If you want to mask your caller ID when making calls or unmask it without complicated set-up, use this code.

*43#

To see or turn on/off call waiting, this code can be dialled.


##4636##

To test for battery, Wi-Fi, usage statistics.

#0#

This is used to activate general test mode for all of the features available in a phone.


*#0283#

This is used to check the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) radiation values of your phone to see if it complies with standards.

##7780##

On some android phones, this code is enabled to quickly wipe your phone via factory reset. It is not so common due to the irreversible nature of such a function.

##273282255663282*##

This important code is used to backup media files on your phone to an external storage or a dedicated cloud storage.

##2663##

It is used to diagnose issues with the touchscreen of a phone.


#7594##*

Sometimes added as a secret USSD code to change what the power button does.

Why Might You Not See All Of These Codes On Your Phone

Android is more open than iOS and thus things vary differently according to phone manufacturers.
There are over a hundred different Android phones in the market today and these phones have unique internal features that can be used to tell them apart.

Even the default features that come with each Android upgrade are available based on the phone's manufacturers. This is why some normal Android features are unavailable in some phones.

Because of this, it won't be uncommon if all of these codes are not recognized on your phone. Some phones still have codes that are specific to them.

For instance, in many Oppo phones which are supported by the ColorOS, a dedicated option is available for users to hide apps using USSD codes, this is something that's not available on many other Android phones.

Another reason why some of these codes aren't available on your phone is because provision has been made for them in settings or with a default app. Many phone manufacturers incorporate hidden and advanced features in the additional settings on their device making the need for adding secret codes redundant.

Moreover, due to how people might tend to abuse it, oftentimes unknowingly, phone manufacturers will deliberately refuse to make some of these advanced codes available or make a warning before it is activated.

Conclusion

By understanding the codes specific to your phone, you can become a maestro of your phone. If you're more intrigued with what you can do using USSD codes on your phone, you can search online for it or enter Android forums like XDA Developers or even Computer Hope and find information there. Additionally, you can also consult your phone manufacturers for help, but preferably, you check with your phone's settings if you are not so tech savvy.