Three American phone companies have approved the idea of putting a "kill switch" in each smartphone in case the device is stolen.
Executives from Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile USA and C Spire Wireless said on Wednesday that they plan to implement kill switch capability into their mobile devices, PCWorld.com reported.
According to Randal Milch, general counsel at Verizon Communications, the company has been collaborating with app developers and manufacturers to introduce a kill switch.
"We are eagerly awaiting kill switch capabilities from other phone manufacturers," he said, as reported by PCWorld. "It's both a manufacturer and an operating system issue."
Milch noted that the kill switch function would have to be free and secure from hackers.
"We don't want an instance where it's a hackable kill switch issue," he said.
While the phone companies are planning to implement the technology, they haven't yet endorsed legislation that would make kill switches a requirement.
Sen. Amy Klubuchar, D-Minn., introduced the Smartphone Theft Prevention Act earlier this month. The law would require all mobile providers to give customers the option for a phone kill switch.
Mobile devices are involved in about a third of all thefts in the U.S., and smartphones "are fetching between [USD] $100 and $500 on the international market," Klobuchar said, according to PCWorld.
"This legislation will help eliminate the incentives for criminals to target smartphones by empowering victims to take steps to keep their information private, protect their identity and finances, and render the phone inoperable to the thieves," Klobuchar said in a news release.
Phone carriers have been taking their own measures to protect customers.
T-Mobile is part of a global stolen-phone database alert system, according to Kathleen Ham, the company's vice president for federal regulatory affairs.
The company puts locate, lock and wipe software on every device, said Ham, as reported by PCWorld.
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