How to protect yourself from phone thieves if the worst should happen

Thefts of iPhones are rising massively, with latest figures showing that more than 1,000 stolen devices have been recovered in just one week by detectives.

People who have their phones taken are at risk of having cash stolen from them as well as important personal details.

But you can now protect yourself easily – with just a few simple steps.

Those using Apple iPhones, which carries an iOS system, have been been told which shortcuts to use to prevent anything else from being stolen, according to one user on Reddit.

Here’s how you can protect your details if your phone is taken by thieves.

How to protect yourself if your phone gets stolen

1. Users should turn off the ability to access control centre when your phone is locked which can prevent them thieves turning on airplane mode, making the device impossible to track. This can be done by going in settings, selecting face ID and passcode, and turning toggle control centre while locked off.
2. If thieves do manage to turn airplane mode on straight away, a shortcut can be added which locks the phone and turns airplane mode back off. Users need to setup an automation that says ‘when airplane mode is turned on, execute this shortcut’.
3. Face ID also needs to be turned on for the most important apps, including banking, email, messaging and photos. This is done by pressing ‘Enable FaceID’ after long pressing on the app.
4. Users have also been urged to store their International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) stored somewhere safe. This is a unique 15-digit number which identifies the device, and means the phone can be ‘bricked’ via a network.
5. Where possible, iPhone users should have a second phone to use banking apps which can be left at home

In footage released by the Metropolitan Police, one plain clothed police officer is seen spotting a phone snatcher, in a dark blue backwards baseball cap and black jacket in Oxford Circus.

The thief had targeted an elderly person in the tourist hot spot, but one officer spotted the attack and tackled him to the ground in front of shocked pedestrians.

Other footage shows moped drivers snatching devices out of the hands of people walking along pavements and waiting at bus stops.

Officers also carried out raids in second-hand phone shops and used helicopters to find the thieves.

Snatch thefts have increased by 150% in London over the last year, with one phone stolen in the capital every six minutes.

The Home Secretary will chair a summit with law enforcement bodies today to try and stop the thefts plaguing London.

Commander Owain Richards, who is leading the Met’s response to phone thefts, said:

‘We are seeing phone thefts on an industrial scale, fuelled by criminals making millions by being able to easily sell on stolen devices either here or abroad.

‘By intensifying our efforts we’re catching more perpetrators and protecting people from having their phone stolen in the capital. But we need help from partners and industry to do more.

‘That is why we’re working with other agencies and government to tackle the organised criminality driving this trade and calling on tech companies to make stolen phones unusable.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.