Management of Info Systems

Carriers agree to disable stolen phones for good

Recently, cell phone companies have been teaming up with the government to make it as hard to use a stolen cell phone as it is a stolen car. Major cell phone carriers and the Federal Communications Commission have agreed to set up a database of identification numbers that are unique to each phone. With the use of this list cellular carriers will be able to permanently disable a phone once it has been reported stolen. Before now carriers have only been disabling “SIM” cards which can be swapped in and out of phones. This allows for a black market to exist for stolen phones. The goal of this agreement is to make a stolen phone as useless as an empty wallet. According to the NYPD 42% of all property crimes of individuals in NYC in 2011 involved a cell phone, with some crimes being accompanied by violence. Both IPhones and Android phones use SIM cards which make them easy to be sold after theft.

I think this is a great idea because cell phone theft is such a major problem today. It is good to hear that the thieves are no longer going to be able to use a stolen phone so easily. It’s a hassle when your phone is stolen and you have to go through such a process to make sure people cannot use it sp easily. This is a reoccurring issue that will be good to stay in touch with over the news years. We are starting to see security becoming more advanced as technology is being more advanced.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2012/04/09/carriers_agree_to_disable_stolen_phones_for_good/