The iPhone and other smart phones are very popular with the least coveted of all demographics: pickpockets and aggressors. This Reuters article points out that in New York, while petty crime are on the rise, the theft of the smart phone is. The article focuses on the new anti-theft technologies which enable users to find their phones, as well as alarms activate them and allow remotely wiping data from the phone. The latter is particularly important for the prevention of identity theft. Even if a stolen iPhone is costly and impractical, the data that is on it can cost you much more.
There are other ways to help protect you against theft and the iPhone:
1. Ditch the white headphones Apple iPhone; they are a telling sign.
2. Make sure you use a password (and wipe down your screen frequently, so no one sees the smudgy proof of access code digits).
3. If you are really concerned about the password, you can download Apple iPhone Configuration Utility and longer alpha numeric passcodes. The characters you use, the more possible combinations of keys.
4. There is an option in the password settings for the iPhone itself clear if the wrong password is entered 10 times. This will help protect your personal data if the iPhone falls into the wrong hands.
If you do lose your iPhone, check out our guide on how to recover from a lost or stolen iPhone. Remember, this is as much about information theft as it is about the loss of your device. You can protect yourself against identity theft by using one of the many options in our Identity Theft section opinions protective services.