How Cops and Hackers Could Abuse California’s New Phone Kill-Switch Law

How Cops and Hackers Could Abuse California’s New Phone Kill-Switch Law

‘Beginning next year, if you buy a cell phone in California that gets lost or stolen, you’ll have a built-in ability to remotely deactivate the phone under a new ‘kill switch’ feature being mandated by California law—but the feature will make it easier for police and others to disable the phone as well, raising concerns among civil liberties groups about possible abuse.
The law, which takes effect next July, requires all phones sold in California to come pre-equipped with a software ‘kill switch’ that allows owners to essentially render them useless if they’re lost or stolen. Although the law, SB 962, applies only to California, it undoubtedly will affect other states, which often follow the Golden State’s lead. It also seems unlikely phone manufacturers would exclude the feature from phones sold elsewhere. And although the legislation allows users to opt out of the feature after they buy the phone, few likely will do so.’
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