US mobile operators have partnered with the FCC to announce new measures to combat mobile phone theft. The operators will develop a common database to list devices reported stolen by customers and blocked by the carrier. Most already have an internal database that prevents reactivation of the phone on the network, and this data will now be shared across carriers. The service should roll-out over the next 18 months. Operators will also educate customers more on how to lock their phones with passwords and use locate/wipe applications for erasing data if the handset is stolen. This will include a media campaign sponsored by the industry. The mobile association CTIA will publish quarterly updates on the industry's progress from July. These will be submitted to the FCC, which can then decide whether further regulation is needed. In addition, members of Congress plan to introduce legislation that will make it a federal crime to take steps to evade the effective deployment of a stolen phone database, including by tampering with hardware identifiers on wireless devices.
