Incidences of cell phone theft have increased substantially in recent months. According to the Federal Communications Commission, nearly a third of all robberies involve a cell phone being stolen. Fortunately, you will be less likely to have your phone and the information on it stolen if you take the proper steps. Here are some things that you may want to try:
Safeguard Your Phone
Many people are so used to having their phone with them that they start to take it for granted. They would never walk around with a hundred dollar bill in their hands. However, they will carry a mobile that is worth several times that much money in plain sight.
You are essentially inviting a mugger to steal your phone when it is visible like that. It is best to hide any mobile device when you aren’t using it.
You should also never leave your phone unattended. Burglars look for cars with cell phones left behind to break into. They also go through the glove compartment and look under the seats so hiding it isn’t necessarily going to keep it from being stolen either. Your phone should either be on your person or safely locked away in a contained space at all times.
There are a number of different tools on the market which will let you find your phone if it is lost. You may want to try using some of these anti-theft devices. Many wireless providers and regulators are starting to create new programs that will track all mobile devices in their respective countries. The FCC intends to have such a system in place within the next couple of months.
Protect Your Information
Replacing your smartphone can cost over $500. That would be an inconvenience enough, but the cost of losing the information on your phone can be a lot higher.
You may have a lot of valuable business data on there that the thief could try to sell. Some criminals will also try blackmailing people over the data on their phone. Earlier this year a crook found explicit pictures on a woman’s cell phone and tried to blackmail her for $5,000. Here are some things that you will want to do to reduce or eliminate these risks:
- Make sure that your phone is always password protected and will lock after being inactive for a brief period (ideally less than a minute).
- Try to host financial information and other sensitive data on the cloud. It may be a good idea to delete it from your cell phone completely.
- Many of the anti-theft applications on the market will let you delete all information on your phone remotely. Your phone won’t be usable if you recover it, but at least your information will be safe. Many wireless providers have education programs dedicated to helping people protect the data on their devices remotely if they are stolen. It may be worth looking into these.
Protecting your information from theft may be even more important than your phone. Make sure you do so carefully.
About the author: Kalen is a technology and security writer. He writes about the benefits of using tools such as Replace Your Cell.
Filed under: Dangerous Lee University, Featured Press, Health and Lifestyle
