If you’ve browsed an Apple Store recently, you may notice that the display devices are no longer tethered to their docks or tables. That’s because new security measures mean that the devices don’t work outside of the store. Maybe no one told the five young men who ran off with with more than 20 devices that can only really be used as pretty paperweights. [More]
kill switch
California Becomes Second State To Require “Kill Switch” On All Smartphones
By 8.26.14
California officially became the second state in the U.S. to require smartphone manufacturers to include a “kill switch” function on all devices. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the bill into law on Monday, just two weeks after the measure passed the state senate. [More]
California Passes Law Requiring All Phones Come Equipped With “Kill Switch” By 2015
By 8.12.14
Nearly four months after California lawmakers shot down a bill that would require smartphone manufacturers to include a “kill switch” function on all devices, a similar version of the law is headed to the governor’s desk for signing. [More]
Microsoft, Google To Introduce “Kill-Switch” Function As Report Shows The Deterrent Cuts Thefts
By 6.19.14
Smartphone manufacturers appear to be taking consumers’ and legislators’ demand for anti-theft measures to heart. Just a month after Minnesota became the first state to pass a law requiring manufacturers to create kill switches Microsoft and Google announced that they would introduce the theft deterrent technologies into their products. And that’s a good thing considering a new report highlights just how effective kill switches have been reducing the theft of technology. [More]
Minnesota Becomes First State To Sign A Smartphone “Kill Switch” Law
By 5.15.14
Just a few weeks after California’s “Kill Switch” bill for smartphones failed, Minnesota has become the first state to sign such a bill into law. Starting July 1, 2015, it will be against the law to sell a smartphone in Minnesota without antitheft software already installed, so owners can deactivate the phone if it’s lost or stolen. [More]
California Lawmakers Pull Plug On Smartphone “Kill Switch” Law
By 4.25.14
With nearly 3 million phones vanishing — often into the hands of sticky-finger thieves — each year, there has been a recent push to introduce legislation that would require wireless providers to include a “kill switch” functionality in all devices, allowing phone owners to remotely deactivate their devices until, and only if, they are located. But one such bill in California has been thwarted, and supporters are blaming the wireless industry. [More]
Law Enforcement Officials From Around The Country Ask Smartphone Manufacturers To Install Kill Switches
By 6.13.13
As we mentioned yesterday, New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón are meeting this week with execs from Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, and Google to discuss ways wireless device manufacturers can help deter theft and eliminate the market for stolen phones. Today, Schneiderman and Gascón — along with attorneys general, district attorneys, chiefs of police, consumer advocates, and educators — have launched a nationwide initiative to bring this issue to the fore. [More]
2.8 Million Reasons Why Smartphones Need To Come With Kill Switches
By 6.12.13
Earlier this week, Apple made a lot of customers happy when they announced that the next iteration of its iOS operating system for iPhones would integrate a so-called “kill swtich” technology that enables the owner to cripple the phone remotely when it’s lost or stolen. And that’s a good thing, because a lot of you are being careless with your wireless devices. [More]
(Updated) EA's Rock Band Game For iPhone Will NOT Self-Destruct In 29 Days
By 5.2.12
UPDATE: We heard back from EA this evening. They tell us that the message to players was an error, and Rock band is NOT being turned off after May 31. [More]
How To Turn Off A PlayStation Vita When It Doesn't Want To Turn Off
By 3.14.12
When most electronic devices freeze up and won’t restart or turn off, one option is to pull out the battery. But that’s not a choice when dealing with Sony’s new PlayStation Vita, which has an internal power source you can’t access without violating the warranty. When the Vita freezes up, it won’t react immediately to button inputs. [More]
Jobs Confirms iPhone 'Kill Switch'
By 8.11.08
Last week, a developer discovered that the iPhone has the capability to quietly connect to Apple’s servers to check an application blacklist, and then disable any installed apps that are on the list. The story was quickly defused by blogs, but today the Wall Street Journal says Steve Jobs has confirmed that there really is an application “kill switch.”
