Today, smartphones have become an important part of our lives. We become worried and frustrated whenever we lose our cell phones or have them stolen.
Until recently, the rightful owner of a cell phone could contact the carrier to have the service suspended on a stolen phone. But the thief, or whoever bought the phone, could easily get it reactivated in a new name.
Recently, Verizon and Sprint activated stolen cell phone databases. This enables smartphone users to have their stolen phones blocked by reporting them to the relevant carrier. The carriers will begin sharing data on stolen smartphones with each other by 30 November 2013.
This new system tracks the unique identification number of each phone. This number is similar to the VIN on a car.
A few years ago, carriers would block SIM cards to make stolen phones useless. But the problem was that the thief could simply use another SIM card.
Carriers will now check the database before reactivating a smartphone. The database will turn a stolen cell phone into a useless piece of plastic, and the thief will not be able to resell it either.
If the rightful owner recovers their smartphone, they can have it reactivated by providing proof of identity.