For determining a temporal reference and/or at least one spatial reference, in a communication system comprising a plurality of gathering gateways configured to transmit beacons, a device performs for each beacon: obtaining (502) therefrom information on current geolocation of the gathering gateway that transmitted said beacon; obtaining (503) therefrom information representing a communication technology used for determining said current geolocation; and obtaining (504) therefrom information indicating whether said current geolocation was determined by internal means or by external means. The device then uses (509) the information thus obtained for determining the temporal reference for synchronizing in time and frequency said device and/or the spatial reference or references for determining the geolocation of said device.