Synchronica and Orange are working on a new service to keep lost cell phones from becoming data-leak disasters. A new service called Mobile Manager, from Synchronica, can remotely make a Windows Mobile-based handset emit an "annoying and embarrassing high-pitched wail," so it can be found after it has been stolen or misplaced.
Given the amount of information being stored on smartphones these days, the main draw of the business-targeted service (which uses Syncrhonica's Mobile Manager) is likely to be the wipe-clean features. Make a phone call, and your phone will be remotely cleansed of all data and locked down. The person who ends up with your phone might be able to resell the phone itself, but they won't be able to touch your credit card info, classified company data, or personal phone numbers.
According to the company, "On average, it takes only 30 seconds for someone to notice that their phone is missing, compared to an hour for a wallet or purse," according to Synchronica. As a result, victims should be able to hear their phones scream out for them.
"The salvaged data included everything from personal banking and tax information to corporate sales activity notes to even former corporate client records, product roadmaps, contact address books, computer passwords, and other private, competitive and highly damaging material," according to a Trust Digital e-mail.
The real kicker here is the bonus 'scream' feature, once alerted to the theft, the missing phone starts screaming like a banshee. And no electronic whine, either; the noise is intended to sound like an actual human scream, according to reports.
Fighting mobile phone theft has become a global challenge. Singapore start-up tenCube, for example, is developing a product called Wavesecure that allows users to lock their mobile phones remotely in the event of their being stolen. In India, Tata Teleservices and Samsung Telecommunications India recently launched the Samsung Hero phone, with an anti-theft mobile tracker.
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