Hello, lovely blog readers!
Now, I don’t want to bum you out, but I do want to talk a little bit more about device theft. It’s a crappy thing that happens to a lot of people, but I’m partnering once again with Absolute LoJack Uncovered to help educate others on how and why this happens. Over the next month, I hope to help you learn how to take some relatively simple steps in your own life both to A) minimize your chances of device theft and B) make your device easier to track down and protect your identity if it does happen to you. And hopefully not make you fall asleep in the mean time with my stats – because this stuff is super important!
This past year year, 3.1 million Americans were victims of smartphone theft. To put that in perspective for you, that’s just the number for smartphone theft. Not laptops, not tablets, not even regular phones. I don’t even want to know what that number would be if we took the rest of those devices into account (although let’s be honest, why would anyone steal a flip phone these days?)
Jokes aside, this is a much more serious issue than you may even realize. Maybe you think your neighborhood is safe enough, so this wont happen to you. That your coworkers are all great people, so you don’t even have to worry. Maybe you just know you’re more careful than those other guys. Of course device theft wouldn’t happen to you.
But it does.
With the value of phones and laptops at an all-time high, they’re hot commodities for thieves; easy to turn a pretty penny. But often, it’s not just about the device itself. A cell phone is easy to replace – expensive, but easy. You buy a new one. Likely you already have your info backed up to the cloud, so within an hour, everything is back to normal. Except that your old device contains more than enough information to get you up to your eyeballs in identity theft before you can even blink an eye.
About a year ago my wallet was stolen and I was totally devastated. The whole first night after I realized it was gone I didn’t sleep a wink, I was up all night worrying. My credit cards, my driver’s license – such powerful tools in the hands of a stranger made me sick with worry.
When I think about how much more information I have stored on my laptop and phone, I literally feel paralyzed with fear. I think about my choice not to password lock my devices because “it takes too long”. I think about how many websites store my passwords and credit card info. I think about my email inbox, my YouTube channel, my Twitter account. All things someone would have access to if they got their hands on my phone.
It’s just – it can’t happen. That could never happen to me, it’s too horrible.
In a world where it’s becoming increasingly more likely that something like this could happen, a program like Absolute LoJack is so, so important. Not only does protecting my devices with their software give me peace of mind, they’re really great about taking a hands on approach to spreading awareness about how to protect yourself and to take precautions, something not nearly enough of us do.
So this month, I’ll be sharing behind-the-scenes info I’m learning from their Investigation and Recovery Team (which is made up of forensic experts and reformed tech thieves – pretty cool, right?) to give you a better idea of what the inner workings of device theft look like.
I know it sounds dry, but I’m going to try to make it fun. And hopefully by the end of it, you’ll have learned something as well. Let’s not become statistics. Let’s keep our devices safe.
Follow #AbsoluteUncovered all month for more tips and stories from other bloggers! And, as a special gift to you, Absolute LoJack has offered a 30% discount to my readers on a 1-year Absolute LoJack Standard or Premium subscription. Just enter the code UNCOVER30 a checkout and the code will be automatically applied to your purchase.
Disclosure: My partnership with Absolute LoJack includes a complimentary subscription and other consideration. All opinions, as always, are my own.
