--- description: Smartphone theft has plummeted by double digits since manufacturers introduced a "kill switch" feature, enabling users to power down their stolen phones remotely, city officials announced on Tuesday. title: Smartphone Theft Plummets as 'Kill Switches' Go Mainstream image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ba4292bc6413d18/69877892524fc03156debc27/iphone-social-apps-whatsapp.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # This New Smartphone Feature Is Stopping Thieves  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 11, 2015 4:47 PM CUT  Elizabeth Renstrom for TIME  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 11, 2015 4:47 PM CUT Smartphone theft has plummeted by double digits since manufacturers introduced a “kill switch” feature, enabling users to power down their stolen phones remotely, municipal officials announced on Tuesday. Officials in New York and San Francisco simultaneously announced that the number of stolen iPhones reported to city police have plummeted by 40% and 25%, respectively, since Apple released a “kill switch” feature in 2013, Reuters [reports](http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/02/11/uk-usa-smartphone-killswitch-idUKKBN0LF09320150211 "undefined"). In London, smartphone theft rates were halved over the same period. The numbers mark a continuous improvement over figures [reported](http://time.com/2900581/iphone-thefts-drop-kill-switch/ "undefined") last June, as “kill switches” became a standard feature on new phones. Apple, AT&T, Google, Nokia and Samsung have signed an agreement to make anti-theft switches available on all phones manufactured after July 2015. The announcement comes as lawmakers in California and several other states consider making “kill switches” a mandatory feature on all smartphones, in order to sap profits from the black market trade in stolen phones. One tenth of all thefts in the U.S. involve a mobile device, according to survey statistics [compiled](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/tac-mdtp-report-v1.0-final-tac-version.pdf "undefined") by the FCC. _Read next:_ [_Apple Just Made This Huge Change to the App Store_](http://time.com/3708867/apple-guns-censorship/?xid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") ### PHOTOS: The Rise of Mobile Phones from 1916 to Today  1916 A German field telephone station in the Aisne department of northern France during World War I. Paul Thompson—FPG/Getty Images  1970 French singer and actor Johnny Hallyday in a scene from the film 'Point de Chute' (aka 'Falling Point'). Keystone/Holton/Getty Images  1980 An early mobile phone during the Iranian Embassy siege at Princes Gate in South Kensington, London. Kypros/Getty Images  1983 Bob Maxwell, general manager of Englewood-based Mobile Telephone of Colorado, places a call on an FCC-approved radio frequency while driving to work. Lyn Alweis—Denver Post/Getty Images  1986 THE A-TEAM "The Say U.N.C.L.E. Affair" Episode 5\. (l-r) Eddie Velez as Frankie Santana, Robert Vaughn as General Hunt Stockwell, George Peppard as John 'Hannibal' Smith. Bill Dow—NBC/Getty Images  1992 Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton talks on a cell phone while meeting with Boston Mayor Ray Flynn in a New York hotel on Sept. 25. Mark Lennihan—AP  1993 Whoopi Goldberg during ShoWest in Las Vegas. Jeff Kravitz—FilmMagic/Getty Images  1997 A farmer with his family sitting on a Bullock Cart and talking on a mobile Phone, in Delhi. India Today Group/Getty Images  2001 A woman watches smoke pour out of the World Trade Center Towers in New York on September 11. Nicholas Goldberg—Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images  2011 A rebel militiaman speaks on his mobile phone after capturing territory from government troops on March 25 in Ben Jawat, Libya. John Moore—Getty Images  2011 A youth films the aftermath of tear gas police fired at protestors in Muhammed Mahmoud Street near Tahrir Square on November 23 in Cairo. Peter Macdiarmid—Getty Images  2012 Audience members take pictures of President Barack Obama at Florida Atlantic University on April 10 in Boca Raton, Florida. Marc Serota—Getty Images  2014 A teenager takes a selfie in front of Queen Elizabeth II during a walk around St. Georges Market in Belfast. The Queen has apparently voiced her dismay that when she carries out engagements she is greeted by a sea of mobile phones. Peter Macdiarmid—PA Wire/Press Association Images/AP [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/"},"headline":"This New Smartphone Feature Is Stopping Thieves","datePublished":"2015-02-11T16:47:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:45:12.725Z","description":"City officials report double-digit declines of smartphone theft since 2013","url":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/","keywords":["Tech","Smartphones","Security"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ba4292bc6413d18/69877892524fc03156debc27/iphone-social-apps-whatsapp.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Kedmey","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ba4292bc6413d18/69877892524fc03156debc27/iphone-social-apps-whatsapp.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"TIME.com stock photos Social Apps iPhone","caption":"TIME.com stock photos Social Apps iPhone","creditText":"Elizabeth Renstrom for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/","name":"This New Smartphone Feature Is Stopping Thieves"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Toddler-Proof Your iPhone or iPad","description":"Tips, tricks and general advice for parents with Apple-based tablets or smartphones and inexhaustibly curious kids","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/2okCiWJ2/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-05-14T16:41:37.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/2okCiWJ2.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/","duration":"PT2M42S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3704939/smartphone-kill-switch-2/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```