Ms. Divya Rajvanshi’s
smart phone recently went missing at her workplace. She immediately panicked,
as the smart phone held her mobile phone banking details & other sensitive
information.
But, shortly after
the disappearance, Divya received a message on her email account with a photograph
of the office peon, asking whether the person was authorised to use her phone.
Unknown to the thief, the phone automatically snapped his picture when he tried
to change the SIM card and mailed it to her.
For some, the cost of
replacing a phone pales in comparison to the financial risk should the phone
find its way into the hands of a hacker.
In this regard,
taking some steps in advance can help safeguard your sensitive information,
even though the chances of recovering your mobile phone are often next to nil.
Before a loss..!
One of the first
things you should do when you purchase a new mobile is to write down all
information about the make, model number & serial numbers, besides the
unique device identification number, known as IMEI.
This information can
help the police & mobile service provider track your phone in case it goes
missing.
You should also
establish a PIN or / password to
restrict access to your phone if it gets stolen or / misplaced. With most modern phones where the
battery can not be taken out, this could give you the valuable time to locate
the device before it is shut down.
The next step you
should consider is installing anti-theft software on your phone. Some of these
software, like COMODO Anti-Theft, are free and include features to provide the
location of your phone, lock your phone, wipe its memory clean, photograph the
thief, issue an alert if the sim card is changed, or / sound an alarm even if the volume is turned
off. Some phones may have such features built in; ensure you inspect these
thoroughly.
One more step you
could take is to have your phone display your contact information on the
phone’s lock screen, a feature available on some phones.
This is particularly
handy if your phone has not been stolen, but just misplaced, in which case
someone can get in touch with you.
Losing smart phones
is the riskiest. But even in case your phone is not ‘smart’, minimising the
amount of data you store is another great way to keep your financial
information safe & secure.
After a theft..!
In the worst case
scenario where your phone is lost, the first step to take is to notify your
mobile service provider and the police.
In case the theft
just occurred, you could also try triggering the alarm, which hopefully could scare
the thief into discarding it.
One more important
step is to immediately notify your bank so that your mobile banking service is
deactivated till you replace your phone.
Keep an eye on your
financial accounts in the aftermath of a loss as well, just in case.
If the chances of
recovering your phone are grim, “brick” it as a last resort, rendering it
unusable.
Some mobile
applications allow you to do this, but you can also approach your mobile
service provider to deactivate it using the IMEI number.
The odds are high
that a large number of cell phone users have lost their devices at some point
in time, or / will in future.
According to a report
by mobile security firm Lookout, 113 cell phones are lost or / stolen every
minute in the US and, on an average, an individual misplaces his / or her phone
about once a year.
Juxtapose that data
with the Indian scenario, where almost every member of the 1.1-billion-strong
population has a mobile, and the rate of mobile theft is likely to be
significantly higher!
Src: ARVIND JAYARAM,
The Hindu
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