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Google and Microsoft Plan Kill Switches On Smartphones

Posted by timothy on from the ok-but-do-you-want-this-in-syria-or-china dept.

itwbennett (1594911) writes "Responding to more than a year of pressure, Google and Microsoft will follow Apple in adding an anti-theft "kill switch" to their smartphone operating systems. In New York, iPhone theft was down 19 percent in the first five months of this year. Over the same period, thefts of Samsung devices — which did not include a kill switch until one was introduced on Verizon-only models in April — rose by over 40 percent. In San Francisco, robberies of iPhones were 38 percent lower in the six months after the iOS 7 introduction versus the six months before, while in London thefts over the same period were down by 24 percent. In both cities, robberies of Samsung devices increased. 'These statistics validate what we always knew to be true, that a technological solution has the potential to end the victimization of wireless consumers everywhere,' said San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon."

20 of 137 comments (clear)

  1. They never answered the question... by roc97007 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    How does stealing smartphones relate to other types of crime? Is it really a thing at all? TFA gives percentage increases but no way to relate that to number of consumers, or actual monetary impact, so there's no way to tell if this is significant, or if it's a problem the average person is likely to run into.

    People being hit by falling pianos up 100% this year!

    It seems pretty obvious that this is being pursued because it gives the semblance of government helping consumers while at the same time giving government one more tool they can use to control the population. Because gee, that's never happened before...

    --
    Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
    1. Re:They never answered the question... by netsavior · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not to mention consumer confidence. If Google/MS has consumers convinced that their phone is *safe* people will trust it with more and more stuff. It is the same reason the best antivirus out there for windows is free from microsoft, they realized consumer confidence is very very powerful.

      If your phone is also your credit card and your medical records, and your financial planner, etc etc, well that is just more data for them to monetize.

    2. Re:They never answered the question... by Talderas · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The article only provides the percentages but doesn't include the raw numbers by which the percentages were derived. It is highly suggested by the article that since iOS has a kill switch the thefts of iOS were instead switched to non-iOS devices. That's where the raw data would be helpful and knowing how many of the thefts were iOS vs Android. Knowing the demographics of those who typically purchase iOS vs Android would also be helpful as well are those purchasing iOS less security savvy than those who purchase Android? Repeat victims that switched OSes is a factor that needs to be eliminated. You also need to know how the crime is usually perpetrated. Are these theft violent and using threats to get the phone from the victims or are they crimes of opportunity that occur because the device is left unattended?

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
    3. Re:They never answered the question... by LetterRip · · Score: 3, Informative

      3 million stolen last year, doubling compared to the previous year

      http://thinkprogress.org/econo...

    4. Re:They never answered the question... by Bogtha · · Score: 5, Insightful

      there's no way to tell if this is significant, or if it's a problem the average person is likely to run into.

      I spent approximately 5-10 seconds typing phone theft statistics into Google and it led me to the Office of National Statistics, which says that 4% of 14-24 year-olds were victims of phone theft in the 2011/12 year.

      It seems pretty obvious that this is being pursued because it gives the semblance of government helping consumers while at the same time giving government one more tool they can use to control the population.

      It seems pretty obvious that people carrying small, expensive gadgets around with them are a prime target for thieves, that this is a legitimate, pervasive problem, and that this solution is effective in combating this crime.

      --
      Bogtha Bogtha Bogtha
    5. Re:They never answered the question... by unrtst · · Score: 3, Interesting

      This was more-or-less my same thought when reading the summary. Lies, damn lies, and statistics.
      * iPhone theft down 19%
      * Samsung theft up by 40%

      That means absolutely nothing without additional context.

      What if prior to the change period, iPhone theft was at 100,000 units a month, and samsung was at 10 units a month?
      What about ratios (N% of activiated iPhone devices stolen per month vs N% of activated samsung devices)?
      What about device classes (they just say "Samsung devices", without qualifying if those are even phones, let alone if that's just their Andriod phones, let alone if that's just certain models, etc)?
      What about market changes? (did samsung sales increase while iPhone decreased, meaning there is a corrolation to availability / supply-and-demand?)

      I wouldn't mind having an option for a kill switch (done "right"), remote wipe (via always-encrypted storage and wipe the key... and abilty to restore the key), lowjack, etc, but these numbers are garbage. They don't deserve to be included in the summary.

  2. It's been awhile since the last patent storm... by Kenja · · Score: 2

    No really... Apple has a patent on the kill switch. http://siliconangle.com/blog/2...

    --

    "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
  3. Who has the big red button? by taikedz · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Whilst all this may be valid and true, how are we going to prevent the "wrong people" from using this kill switch? Will it be hardware based, in which case, how will we be sure it won't be triggered/used remotely if we install a different OS on the device? Or if some script kiddie found a way of activating it by exploiting an insecure app?

    (new hollywood armaggedon scenario: terrorists threaten to detonante a phone bomb that would activate kill switches around the world, bringing down entire civilizations)

    Yes, a technological solution might exist for the problem; question is, is this one the right one? Are we going to stop looking for alternatives?

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    -- "Simplicity is prerequisite for reliability." --Dijkstra
    1. Re:Who has the big red button? by Kjella · · Score: 2

      The NSA's "kill switch" is to take a NSL to your carrier and tell them to kill your service or the whole tower or region for that matter. And if you're really bringing out the big guns there's jammers and missiles, those towers light up like beacons. And whatever exploits they have for the carrier's systems. Besides, I suppose in some WWIII-prelude knocking out the enemy's communications systems and throwing them into disarray may be useful, but I imagine 99.99% of the time they're interested in signals intelligence. Temporarily stopping me from making phone calls until I get on the Internet via fiber/cable/DSL and Skype doesn't seem like a significant objective. Turning the $500 phone that pickpocket or mugger ran off with into a brick on the other hand would have a quite significant effect on petty crime. Unless you observed my PIN and stole the card or force me to withdraw money at gun/knife point the smartphone is clearly the most valuable thing I carry around daily.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
  4. Are thieves that selective? by jfengel · · Score: 2

    Certainly it would be to your benefit to know if the device you're risking your freedom for is worth the effort. But I had thought that phone thefts were largely crimes of opportunity: you see the phone unguarded and you take it. I wouldn't think you have all that long to judge what kind of phone it is.

    I suppose maybe these are just professionals, good at their jobs, who have heard that the fences aren't taking some brands any more because it's not worth it. But I wonder if there's some other factor besides the kill switches that accounts for the data.

    1. Re:Are thieves that selective? by Russ1642 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This isn't to prevent theft of the phone. It's to protect theft of the information stored on the phone, which is generally far more valuable than the phone itself.

    2. Re:Are thieves that selective? by fermion · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I would tend to agree. It may be that people are simply not using the iPhone. To show that the reduction in theft is caused by kill switch, one would have to show the rate of theft is not correlated to the rate of use, or to some other variable such as where of who the phones are used. For instance, if Android is used by younger or older population, it could be that the phones might just be left unprotected or easier to steal. Or if the Android phones are insured,it could be that people 'lose'. I know that some of these warranties cover theft but not screens. That said, there one can easily tell one phone from another if it is out being used. It makes little sense to steal an iPhone, not only because many are shipped out of the US and iPhones are not the most popular phone outside of the US, but also because of the ability to disable the phone. So while the hypothesis is not proven, it makes some sense. There are some stories about phone theft and loss of life. It may be apocryphal, or it may be a repeat of the shoe crisis of the late 20th century where kids were killed for their Jordans. We will see what happens when all phones have the kill switch. It could be a common sense way to make us safer. It could just be a way to stop warranty fraud.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
    3. Re:Are thieves that selective? by Kjella · · Score: 2

      No, the point of a kill switch is to destroy the resale value. Same as an IMEI ban, once reported stolen nobody should* give you service

      * not actually implemented worldwide, yet

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
  5. Re:What about a kill switch for Google and Microso by Penguinisto · · Score: 2

    TFA is why I have a cheap-assed Android phone.

    If it gets stolen, the thing gets remote-wiped five minutes later and I'm only out $150. less than an hour later I can mosey to the store, get another one, and be back on the network with the same phone number, with everything sync'd back up.

    I actually don't mind it when other whip out the new shinies, because I know they're paying through the nose for 'em, and to be honest, there really isn't anything in latest/greatest that blows my dress up. *shrug*

    --
    Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
  6. Hooray! by LookIntoTheFuture · · Score: 2

    Coming soon to Android and Windows devices: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tec...

    --
    Brave Sir Robin ran away. ("No!") Bravely ran away away. ("I didn't!")
  7. Re:What about a kill switch for Google and Microso by LordLimecat · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Except that theyre the only one not cooperating with governments like China these days. Microsoft has been in agreements with them for years.

    Its amazing the spin that people put on reality, whre Google is the one you need to worry about/

  8. Re:I'm sure the NSA wants their fingers on it. by gtall · · Score: 2

    Stop watching TV. The NSA and government agencies would want to keep the cell phone structure working so that (1) people affected can use their cell phones and not sue the government because the government shut them down, and (2) attempt to find out the perpetrators, which would be hard to do if the perps weren't squawking about their latest "victory".

  9. Re:What about a kill switch for Google and Microso by LookIntoTheFuture · · Score: 2

    Bah. They are both terrible. Google gets the blame for pushing personal information gathering to new heights. Everyone else is seeing what they are getting away with and are following suit.

    --
    Brave Sir Robin ran away. ("No!") Bravely ran away away. ("I didn't!")
  10. Re:Solving a problem that shouldn't exist by koan · · Score: 2

    You're correct, lets start with the bankers and phone company CEO's.

    --
    "If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
  11. Re:What about a kill switch for Google and Microso by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 2

    Except that theyre the only one not cooperating with governments like China these days. Microsoft has been in agreements with them for years.

    Keep up with current events, young'un - Google did an about-face on China over a year ago.

    Google Shows China the White Flag of Surrender

    Google hasn't been the "don't be evil" company for quite a while.

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    #DeleteChrome