Systems and methods for personalizing devices using data objects in a manner that deters theft and provides a mechanism for finding lost devices are described. In one embodiment, one of the methods includes uniquely registering a device and an owner of the device with the system. The method further includes personalizing the registered device to include lost and found information, such as by creating an image data object to include the information or providing a text data object that includes the information. In another method, a lost and found tracking service is used to receive a report of a found device from a finder and to determine an associated owner of the found device in order to contact the owner and convey information regarding the finder.