UK Firm To Release 'Screaming' Cell Phone 230
rubberbando writes "Yahoo news is running a story about a plan by a UK cell phone company to help reduce cell theft. Apparently, this new cell phone can be sent a signal after its owner has realized that it has been lost or stolen. The signal tells the phone to wipe all of its data and begin emitting a very loud and obnoxious sound. The sound will only stop if the battery runs out or is removed, but it will begin again as soon as the battery is replaced or charged. Even replacing the sim card will not help."
Who cares if the phone becomes unusable (Score:5, Interesting)
Stolen phones == customer fraud (Score:2, Interesting)
How long till... (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Simpler (Score:3, Interesting)
Well, they used the IMEI [wikipedia.org] number of the phone that is tied to the hardware, although someone with the rights skills might be able to change the flash memory where it's stored. (By the way, you can see the number by typing *#06#). It requires cooperation of the mobile phone providers though, that should have a blacklist of stolen IMEI numbers and take appropriate action as soon as a stolen phone connects to the network.
If this is a private initiative, it seems unlikely that all providers are going to cooperate with keeping track of IMEIs. It's more likely to work by sending a special SMS message to the phone number, which can easily be circumvented by the thief if he recognizes that it is a "screaming" phone and replaces the SIM directly after the theft.
And never mind that you have to figure out the call center phone number to report the loss because all your phone numbers are stored inside the handset. By the way, how is this going to help you get back your phone? The thief will get rid of the phone, and it might be found by someone. But you need a secure system to make sure that only the rightful owner can de-scream it.
Why spend the extra money (UK) (Score:1, Interesting)
Phones already have a GUID !! (Score:2, Interesting)
Cell phones (GSM at least) Already have a GUID which is transmitted all the time while the phone is switched on.
It is easy for operators to track the position of a stolen cellphone down to about a meter if they wanted to.
They have used this to track down the polish kid who knifed someone to death over an iPod.
If you have a cellphone and it's switched on, it's transmitting a guid and position continuously, always.
This is why I think the spat in the UK about ID cards is silly, most people in the UK own a cellphone and it's freely, continuously and permanently giving away their identity AND position.
Anyways. in short, if someone stole your GSM and you tell the police it's attached to a drum of sarin gas, they *will find it* in no time.
Re:wouldn't be that much use (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Obnoxious? (Score:3, Interesting)