21st Century began with the introduction of smartphone technology. It has been hardly 2 decades and we have reached the never expected heights of mobile technology. However, mobile manufacturers have always been thriving to hinder smartphone theft as it is one of the biggest issues that need to be addressed. A great amount of advancement in the field of security has already happened though.
Usually, the security system performs locking mechanisms, which disallows the phone from being used by anyone but its user. And if anyone tries to reset your device, it will usually lock itself permanently to be unlocked by its user when the original password is entered on boot.
However, thieves and hackers have always got tricks to make their way into the phone by hacking into the factory settings and resetting the phone to Day-Zero status. Also, some users don’t activate security password & anti-theft settings on their phones and this renders a luxury to the thieves.
Swedish company Ericsson which once tied up with Sony (Sony Ericson) to make smartphones, has developed a very high-tech anti-theft system. It is patented by them by the name “Adaptive Friction” and currently exists only on paper as a patented idea.
The technology suggests that the mobile device will be equipped with multiple sensors which will have constant monitoring of its nearby environment whether it’s in a pocket, on a table, in a purse, or in your bag or purse. The system does data analysis by collecting data from devices microphones, light sensor(s), camera(s), and gyroscope.
As soon as a hand tries to hold the device, it will quickly run a process to determine whether or not the hand is of the owner or someone else. The analysis process will determine whether the grip is a secure and confident grab or a sneaky pinch. Not only this, the device will utilize biometric sensors to analyze the person’s heartbeat and compare it to known heartbeat patterns of the rightful owner.
If the system recognises that the device is being grabbed by an unknown & suspicious person, it will begin vibrating at a high rate using ultrasonic frequencies, which would make the device hard to hold as it will become super slippery and thus hard to pinch out of a pocket. This gives rise to the name “Adaptive Friction”.
This technology will be a new beginning in the device security technology and will encourage newer inventions. Also, it will enable the thief to be caught at the very site, where crime is being conducted and would prevent the phone owner to go through the prolonged procedures that usually follow when a device is stolen.
Although the idea and the whole concept is literally on pape right now, we wish such technology shall come to life.
