A Simple Fix Makes a Big Difference in Phone Thefts

Kill switches in cell phones appear to be having an effect on thieves. Thefts of iPhones declined 38% in San Francisco and 24% in London in the six months after Apple’s offer in September 2013 of software that allows users to lock down phones after thefts, and in New York City, robberies of Apple products fell 19% in the first five months of 2014, according to The New York Times. Cell-phone companies were slow to incorporate kill switches, which make it harder for thieves to resell stolen phones, but Samsung has added the technology to the newest version of its top-selling Galaxy S phones and is expected to add it to others soon.