Consumers overwhelmingly support the security option for their smart phones:
According to a recent study at Creighton University, Americans spend about $4.8 billion per year on cellphone insurance and $580 million per year to buy new phones when theirs get stolen. Now, if cellphones came with a “kill switch,” users could control remotely when their devices were stolen, and the Creighton study estimates that consumers could save about $2.6 billion per year. The study, conducted by statistician and data scientist William Duckworth, was based on a February survey of 1,200 smartphone users. Duckworth’s survey showed that 99 percent of respondents thought cell carriers should make kill switches an option on phones. Ninety-three percent felt that this service should be free, and 83 percent said that such a feature would reduce theft.
But Dave Smith points to the major player blocking such reform:
Though Duckworth’s report should help the case for a kill switch, lawmakers will still face some pushback from the CTIA, the lobbying group that represents the telecom industry—which has two executives from companies that sell insurance to smartphone owners on its board of directors.
The CTIA has a different idea on how to handle smartphone theft. Instead of shutting down stolen phones individually, the CTIA has offered up a database that can block stolen phones from being reactivated by the phone’s new owner. Unfortunately, the database has a few weaknesses, including the fact that it only works with a handful of countries; in other words, if you steal a phone and travel to the right country, the CTIA can’t block those stolen phones from getting reactivated.
Previous Dish on the subject here.
The Dish 