Mobile devices have become so ubiquitous that they’ve become the subject of what some call “the modern day purse snatching.” After all, they contain everything from personal emails to credit card information, holding more value than their price tag alone. Every minute, mobile phones are lost or stolen. A lost or stolen device is bad enough when it’s your own, but what if that device was purchased by your student’s school?
This is the scenario that concerns many schools and prevents a 1:1 mobile learning programme from being anything more than a topic of conversation. Just saying 1:1 to some people will send a chill down their spine. ”What if the device is misused, or broken, or God forbid stolen!” With this week’s announcement at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, a possible solution to device theft is on the horizon.
One of the new features of Apple’s iOS 7 is a security utility called Activation Lock. If a device, updated with iOS 7, is stolen and the perpetrator disables Find My iPhone, the phone will not reactivate. If the perpetrator wipes the phone, the original Apple ID and password is required to use the phone. Granted, the new feature doesn’t entirely prevent theft, but it does make the benefit of stealing a device less rewarding for the thief.
We’re all intrigued to see if this new security feature will prevent device theft in the future, but we also hope that the new iOS 7 will aid in moving 1:1 conversations forward. Keeping students safe is always our number 1 priority, and addressing the consequences of device theft are no exception. We’ve developed a Bundle on My Big Campus with top tips for how to prevent device theft and to keep students safe. Click here to see the Bundle and share it with your colleagues and your classroom.
