“Kill-switch” anti-theft tools added to iPhones and Android devices seem to be acting as a real deterrent to criminals. Authorities in the US and the UK have revealed significant drops in the number of stolen smartphones since the facilities were introduced.
Kill switches enables smartphones owners who suspect their devices have been stolen to send commands that stop them being accessed or reset unless an ID and passcode are entered. Apple was the first of the big tech companies to introduce such as tool, with its Activation Lock being launched as part of its iOS 7 operating system in 2013.
London has announced a 50% drop in iPhone thefts, whilst San Francisco has reported a 40% drop. Meanwhile, New York revealed a fall of a quarter. The three cities collaborated to create the Secure Our Smartphones (SOS) initiative in 2013 following a wave of cellphone thefts.
San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said: “Preventing their own customers from being the target of a violent crime is the coolest technology [the mobile industry] can bring to market.” However, manufacturers are still under pressure to do more to put thieves off. Google’s Factory Reset Protection is not available on all devices using the operating system. Microsoft have announced plans to include a similar feature for phone owners using Windows 10.
Read about proposals for a Californian kill switch bill here.
