Smartphones have become a crucial part of our lives. It is often the first thing we look at in the morning, almost 80% of people between 18-44-years of age check their smartphone right after waking up in the morning; and for many of us, it is the last thing we look at before going to sleep.
According to IDC, the worldwide smartphone market is heading for a certain growth. IDC believes that the smartphone market will increase 19.3% and reach a total of 1.2 billion units shipped in 2014. As the users of smartphones are increasing tremendously so are the thefts. As per the Consumer Reports, about 3.1 million American users had become victims of smartphone theft in 2013. The survey also says that 1.4 million smartphones were lost and never recovered last year.
People spend a lot of their time messaging, calling and browsing the Internet, which generally means smartphones contain their personal data. But what happens to that data if the smartphone is lost or stolen? In such scenario, all the photos, contacts, and e-mail account details will be in the hands of the thief who can then steal user’s identity and can even exploit them financially.
As a solution, New York, San Francisco and London’s law enforcement officials planned for additional security measures that will include the kill switch feature. In a recent report, Microsoft and Google said that smartphones using their operating systems — including handsets produced by big names like Samsung, Nokia and Motorola — will also have the kill switch feature. This kill switch feature will make the device unusable after they have been reported stolen.
Kill switch is basically a software that will allow users to lock down their smartphone after the device has been reported stolen. The users can reactivate their smartphone only with the accurate password or personal identification number. This will therefore make it difficult for thief’s to sell the stolen smartphones in the black market.
Apple’s iPhone also had a kill switch, called Activation Lock, since September. Six months after Apple released its anti-theft feature, police reported that iPhone robberies in San Francisco dropped 38%. In London, they fell 24%, in New York City robberies dropped 19% after the inclusion of this feature.
However, according to reports, thefts of Samsung products increased 51% in the first five months of 2014, compared to the same period a year ago. Samsung has introduced a kill switch feature for its Galaxy S5 device in April; it is yet to see its effect on theft rates.
Additionally, Microsoft would introduce a kill switch feature in a future software update for its Windows Phone operating system. Google will also be introducing one in the next version of Android, said Matt Kallman, a Google spokesman.
Meanwhile the best thing smartphone users can do to guard their phones against thieves is to install reliable antivirus software such as eScan. For enhanced security of an android Smartphone install eScan Mobile Security for Android. Click here https://www.escanav.com/english/content/products/downloadlink/downloadproduct.asp?pcode=ES-AND-MS
