Ask Slashdot: How Can I Prepare For the Theft of My Android Phone?

New submitter Adam Jorgensen writes "Last week my 4-week old Moto G phone was stolen while getting onto the train at Salt River in Cape Town, South Africa. That in itself is no big deal. Cellphone theft is a huge problem here in South Africa and I've had at least two previous cellphones stolen. The big deal this time, for me at least, was that this was the first time I've lost an Android phone to theft. When I actually sat down and thought about it, losing a fully configured Android phone is actually a big deal as it provides ready access to all kinds of accounts, including ones Google account. This could potentially allow the thief to engage in all kinds of malicious behavior, some of which could have major implications beyond the scope of the theft.

Luckily for me it seems that the thief did the usual thing: Dumped the SIM card, wiped the phone, and switched it off. It's probably had its IMEI changed by now and been sold on to some oblivious punter, possibly some oblivious punter in another country. Still, the potential for serious issue is making me have second thoughts about replacing the phone with anything capable of doing much more than calling. My question is this: Are there any serious solutions out there for Android that secure against theft?"

He continues:

By serious I mean solutions that go beyond the laughably easy to defeat 'Find My Phone' and 'Remote Wipe' options provided at present. Presently I'm thinking along the lines of:

• Full encryption of phone contents
• Some kind of 'Travel Safe' mode that would lock the phone down and trigger a full wipe of not unlocked correctly (Including wiping the phone on next boot if not unlocked before being switched off/running out of battery).

So, any ideas?"

Comments

Re:Seriously?

[dfsmith]

Thanks! I set my PIN to "7".

"How Can I Prepare For the Theft of My Android?"

[Jeremiah Cornelius]

Save us both some time, and just send it to me...

Re:Seriously?

[K. S. Kyosuke]

You've set it awfully low, most phones these days go at least up to "11".

Re:Buy a "Hello Kitty" wrist strap.

[freeze128]

Buy a .44 Magnum. That way you can prevent your phone from being stolen in the first place, and not look like a complete fool.

Solve the problem at the source

[thegarbz]

There's a few simple steps to follow to prevent phone theft in the first place:

Step 1: Wear gloves at all times
Step 2: Put a non-conductive silicon case on your phone
Step 3: Slip phone into pocket
Step 4: Charge up a 400V 10uF capacitor and slip it into your pocket, leads up (now you see the need for gloves).

Then you play a simple game.

1 point for a loud scream on public transit.
10 points for a loud scream followed by self injury while attempting to run away.
100 points if the thief had a pre-existing heart condition.
1000 points for a girl in the vicinity mistaking the agony with simple surprise of your well equipped package and offering to "take you now" right there on the train.

Re:Android Has Full Device Encryption

[camperdave]

Enable the "Wipe after X failures."

I presume you don't have kids :-)

Or you teach them that certain things are not toys. Why, maybe you even keep those things out of the kid's reach! Wow! Y'know, like every real parent has done throughout the ages. Knives, matches, car keys, stoves, cleaning chemicals, really there are things much worse than cellphones out there.

Confirmed. He's never had kids.

Simple

[antifoidulus]

Set your background to a really attractive but clothed female to make them think that's the owner of the phone. Then put an app on your phone(displayed in a prominent place) that says "my hot nude pics" that when launched, wipes your phone. Done!

Re:Seriously?

[evenmoreconfused]

None of the things will protect against theft.

No. The only way I know to do that is what I do: forget it at home every day.