Forget what’s in your wallet — beware your smartphone. It’s becoming one of your most dangerous possessions.
CNN business reporter Blake Ellis warns us about how our do-everything smart phones might get us into trouble, especially if they are stolen:
If your phone was stolen a few years ago, the thief could make prank calls and read your text messages. Today, that person can destroy your social life — you said what on Facebook?! — and wreak havoc on your finances.
Now that smartphones double as wallets and bank accounts — allowing users to manage their finances, transfer money, make payments, deposit checks and swipe their phones as credit cards — they are very lucrative scores for thieves. And with 30% of phone subscribers owning iPhones, BlackBerrys and Droids, there are a lot of people at risk.
“It’s crazy the amount of information on that phone — it’s like carrying a mini-computer around with you, except that more people know the settings on their computer than they do on their phones at this point,” said Nikki Junker, social media coordinator and victim advisor at Identity Theft Resource Center. “People are incredibly at risk as technology improves.”
via Your smartphone could be your most dangerous possession – Jan. 11, 2011.
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