Seven Simple Steps to Look After Your Mobile Phone

Smashing A Mobile Phone

Around 88% of people these days don’t even step outside without having their mobile phones with them. Clearly reliance on these devices means that losing one can be a real nightmare.

But mobile phones have become increasingly compact and lightweight and people often misplace them or they fall out of pockets without our knowledge. In 2008 around 200,000 mobile phones went into washing machines, around 600,000 were dropped down the loo and 55,000 were left in the back of taxis.

We must also consider the very real possibility that a phone may be stolen. More than 2 million mobile phones are stolen in the United Kingdom every year. This equates to around one every 12 seconds and this figure is on the increase.

If a mobile phone is lost there is the initial financial headache of replacement. But there may be some significant call charges arising between the time when the phone was stolen and when it is eventually disabled. There are also the problems that can be caused by losing contact details and other data from the phone.

It has been estimated that as few as only 1 in 5 mobile phone users bother to back up their SIM card data to a separate secure storage device. Although modern phones come with software that makes it simple to transfer data to a computer still people don’t take advantage of this simple facility.

So what can we each do to protect ourselves and our valuable data against loss or theft?

1. Firstly, don’t make it easy for a thief to steal your mobile phone. Never ever leave your phone unattended in your car and always store it securely.
2. Make certain to record the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number from your mobile phone. This is a unique number applied to each and every mobile phone that can be used to disable the mobile phone in the event that it is lost or stolen.
3. You might like to configure your phone to only work after you have entered a PIN. Having to enter a PIN each time you want to use your phone can be a bit of a nuisance but it will prevent a thief from running up significant call charges on your account.
4. Another simple step is to switch your phone to vibrate mode when in a busy public place in order to ensure that nobody else is alerted when your phone rings.
5. You might consider labelling your mobile phone by engraving your name and car registration details onto your phone and its battery. An alternative is to use a system for attaching unique serial number stickers (as provided by trackitback.com) to your phone which will help identify your phone if it is lost or stolen.
6. Get into the habit of backing up your SIM card data as often as possible. If you are adding new contacts and appointments every day then you should be backing up your mobile phone data every day.
7. Finally, make certain that you have some mobile phone insurance that provides the protection that you need. There are differences between various mobile phone insurance policies so be certain to read the small print and ensure that the policy suits your requirements.

By following these steps hopefully you and your phone will not become part of future lost or stolen mobile phone statistics.

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You may also like to protect your income with income protection and don’t overlook the need to protect other devices with some useful gadget insurance.