With smartphone theft on the rise, lawmakers have proposed a bill aimed at reducing the impetus for thieves.
If passed, the law would require manufacturers to install a "kill switch," or a mechanism to disable stolen phones. The law would not only protect sensitive personal data stored on the phone, but also ruin the device's resale value. A group of four senators, led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), introduced the bill on Thursday.
[seealso slug="smartphone-dependency"]
"Cell phone theft has become a big business for thieves looking to cash in on these devices and any valuable information they contain," Klobuchar said in a statement, "costing consumers more than $30 billion every year and endangering countless theft victims."
Citing the Federal Communications Commission, Klobuchar's release stated that one-third of all robberies in the country involve cellphones.
The bill's proposal comes a week after California state legislatures introduced a similar measure in the state's senate.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón all joined Klobuchar in support of the bill, which is being calling the "Smartphone Theft Prevention Act."