Dealers battle for a piece of mobile phone security business

By Jackson Okoth

A growing need to safeguard mobile phone handsets against theft has triggered a flurry of activity by software suppliers; keen to meet this demand for security solutions by cell phone users.

Figures indicate about 20 million people lose their phones every year worldwide.

For the user who is robbed of a mobile phone; this can mean more than the lose of a piece of hardware. It is the lose of contacts, data, and personal information to someone who might use this information maliciously.

For many, it is not just a case of cost but also the sentimental value and sensitive data in the device too. One also runs the risk of losing hundreds of contacts, effectively cutting off from the rest of the world.

Long process

"At the moment, recovery of stolen handsets is a long process that involves reporting and obtaining an abstract report from the police," says Steve Wangara, Development Manager, Pacetech Information Systems.

The police and GSM operators would rely on IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number of the phone, to help recover the phone or block access to any network.

The IMEI number is used by the GSM network to identify valid devices and therefore can be used to stop a stolen phone from accessing the network.

Top on the list of mobile security applications available in this market is WaveSecure. This is a client/server anti-theft software solution for mobile phones.

Most of the mobile thefts ordinarily means lose of precious data and privacy.

WaveSecure provides advanced locking, tracking, and monitoring systems to help you recover your valuable phone. It also offers automatic backup of personal data, ensuring you always have a backup at no extra effort.

Auto-lock features

It also protects your privacy with auto-lock features and remote wipeout feature of all personal data i.e. SMS, contacts, photos, call logs & calendars. If a thief has your phone, it’s rendered worthless when WaveSecure remotely locks down the device.

The software can also remotely sound an alarm on the lost phone, making it noticeable to anyone within an earshot," said Wangara.