'Kill-switch' the key to reducing phone theft
- 10 years ago
Google and Microsoft are to add a ‘kill-switch’ feature to their Android and Windows phone operating systems.
The ‘kill switch’ renders a phone useless if stolen.
Authorities have been urging tech companies to help reduce the number of phone thefts and the ‘kill-switch’ appears to be a solution to the problem.
Apple and Samsung offer a similar feature on their devices.
Some 3.1 million mobile devices were stolen in the US in 2013, nearly double the number of handsets stolen in 2012.
According to a report by the New York State Attorney General, in the first five months of 2014 the theft of Apple phones fell by 17 percent in New York City.
The ‘kill switch’ renders a phone useless if stolen.
Authorities have been urging tech companies to help reduce the number of phone thefts and the ‘kill-switch’ appears to be a solution to the problem.
Apple and Samsung offer a similar feature on their devices.
Some 3.1 million mobile devices were stolen in the US in 2013, nearly double the number of handsets stolen in 2012.
According to a report by the New York State Attorney General, in the first five months of 2014 the theft of Apple phones fell by 17 percent in New York City.