Added ‘Kill Switch’ to mobile phones

 

Google and Microsoft have announced the addition of ‘Kill Switch’ to their Android and Windows Phone.

In the event of  phone theft, its use is important in making it completely secure so that the data in the phone cannot be stolen.

Officials at tech companies have been trying to take steps to curb phone theft, arguing that the “kill switch” option could solve the theft problem.

Apple and Samsung, two of the world’s largest phone manufacturers, are offering such a tool in some of their phone sets.

The move by Google and Microsoft means that Kill Switch will become part of the three most popular operating systems in the world.

Smartphone theft is a major problem worldwide. On this, policy makers have launched a campaign called ‘Safe and Smartphone’.

Under the campaign, he has asked technology companies to take action.

The New York Attorney General said in his report that “an active kill switch option will easily replace expensive multimedia equipment sold with plastic and glass waste.”

Officials claim that since the activation lock was introduced in all iPhones running Apple’s iOS operating system last September, the number of mobile phone thefts has decreased.

According to a report by the New York State Attorney General, theft of Apple devices in New York City decreased by 17% in the first five months of 2014.

Meanwhile, when Apple launched the flagship service, there was a 24 percent drop in iPhone robberies in London and a 38 percent drop in San Francisco compared to the previous six months.

The report states that “theft of other popular mobile devices has increased in the meantime.”

Manoj Menon, managing director of Frost & Sullivan, described it as another step in the right direction.

He told the BBC: “This is a great step forward and will provide the authorities with far-reaching help in reducing the incidence of mobile theft.”

He said it was not a “completely secure system” because “thieves can make money from phone parts and other things.”

However, he said demand in the mobile phone segment and related content market is relatively small, and the “kill switch” option “greatly reduces the financial benefits of mobile device theft.”