Apple Patents Technology for Proactively Finding Lost iPhones

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Smartphones are now a staple in today’s business environment. But what happens when you lose your phone and all the private and sensitive data it contains? Current technologies can help wipe out the data and deactivate the phone remotely, but a new Apple patent would do the job better.

Deactivating your iPhone and wiping out the data remotely through the “Find my iPhone” feature introduced some time back can be useful if your phone was lost or stolen. The problem here is the inconvenience brought about by a remote wipe-out. What if your phone was found and returned? You won’t be able to retrieve your data unless it was synced somewhere.

Apple has solutions for this scenario, and these are included in a recently-granted patent. In summary, said patent’s features will include the following:

• Multiple passcode entry errors will prompt the phone to be in an increased security mode. The phone will then proactively increase the level of security on the device.
• The phone will then scramble and encrypt select areas of the phone, such that they cannot be accessed without entering the correct password. Scrambling will be better than a wipe-out, because the data is still intact in the event that the iPhone is returned to the owner.
• Functions that cost money will be disabled, including data access, SMS messaging and long-distance calls.
• Location tracking is initiated, so that the original owner can have an idea of where the phone is.
• Along with location tracking, the iPhone’s mic will be activated, which can help eavesdrop on conversations. This will be useful in case of a theft.
• The iPhone will prompt for passcode entry. If the correct passcode is keyed in, the proactive security measures will be disabled.
• The third party is also prompted to press a button to call the original owner, which is helpful if the iPhone were found, and the person intends to return it to the owner.

Of course, being a patent means the technology is legally Apple’s to use, but they might or might not incorporate it in future iPhone or iOS releases. With features like this, though, we suppose you’ll have better chances of getting your phone back if you leave your iPhone in a bar or restaurant.