Smartphone 'kill switch' law takes effect in California

Thieves, consider yourselves on notice: California is now smartphone "kill switch" territory. Gov. Jerry Brown (D-CA) signed a bill August 2014 mandating kill switch software be included and turned on in all smartphones manufactured after July 1st and sold in the state. The so-called software is designed to make stealing smartphones essentially pointless by allowing owners to remotely lock their device so no one can use it. The technology, which includes Apple's "Activation Lock" and Google's "Device Protection," has become a key selling point among phone manufacturers that offer peace of mind to protect customers' information if a phone is stolen, and hopefully discourage thieves from stealing it in the first place.

There's good reason for these features. In the past several years, government officials have noticed an "epidemic" of phone thefts, particularly in large cities. Thieves often steal phones and sell them to cartels and shops that often shipped them to willing customers overseas. The technology industry's answer has been to create software that responds to a theft by requiring users to input a passcode before it can be unlocked or restored to factory settings. Though the rule went into effect today, government officials say it will take some time for it to have the maximum effect.