Ever since the smartphone hit the market, it has been a hot commodity and one that thieves make a point to keep an eye out when it comes to robbing someone. For the last 5 years or more, smartphone companies have been trying to make it harder for a robber to gain anything from a stolen smartphone and even though they can still take your phone today, companies are lining up to make sure it cannot be activated which makes the smartphone useless to any buyer of stolen smartphones.
Apple is reportedly going to debut a feature on the next version of iOS that will essentially lock the phone down once it is stolen with a feature called Activation Lock. Since that was announced, other companies like Samsung and LG want to join the fight and are reportedly coming up with applications of their own. The “kill switch” as it is being called on the mobile marketplace, will make it harder for buyers of stolen phones to reactivate them. According to the Wall Street Journal, “South Korea’s Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said last week it is in talks with the two phone makers about introducing the function to new smartphones, likely from early next year, to curb rising phone theft.”
With Apple the feature is tied to the ID that is connected to the one used with Face Time, iMessage, App Store purchases and downloads from iTunes. With Android powered phones, the kill switch feature would require users to register their devices first. Some that oppose having to register devices, see it as a deterrent due to privacy concerns, but if consumers want to protect their information on a stolen phone they at least have an option. Pantech is another company that has a similar feature, but because not many users know about it, the feature is pointless.
Once larger companies get on board with the new feature, it will be likely that smaller companies can get the feature enabled on the device. The United States government is also putting pressure on the phone makers to help reduce the crime related to smartphone theft, but phone makers do not have any reason to help the consumer at this point since they would have to buy another smartphone should theirs be taken. Mobile carriers are also building databases that include serial numbers from stolen phones with a hope to keep them from getting reactivated.
