FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 20, 2014

MIKULSKI ANNOUNCES REFORMS TO DETER CELL PHONE THEFT, HELP PROTECT CONSUMERS PERSONAL INFORMATION
Senator announces legislation to put safety and security of phones and stored personal information back in hands of consumers Nearly one-in-three robberies involve cell phone theft, with criminals targeting smartphones for their high resale value and for the valuable personal and financial information they contain WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) today was joined by Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) General Manager Richard Sarles and Metro Transit Police Chief Ron Pavlik to announce new legislative reforms that would deter cell phone theft and help put the safety and security of personal information stored on mobile devices back in the hands of consumers. The safety and security of Marylanders is a number one priority for me. Thats why Im fighting to bring important reforms and relief to those who have been victims of cell phone theft and fraud, Senator Mikulski said. Our cell phones play an essential role in our day to day lives from connecting us to family and friends to paying our credit card bills and accessing our bank accounts. As essential as they are to us, they are prime targets for thieves. Ive cosponsored legislation that will help put consumers in control of their cell phone data. Victims of snatch crime cell phone theft should be able to fight back so they arent victimized again through data and identity theft. And thieves should know that whenever they steal a cell phone, they wont be able to use it or sell it. Senator Mikulski has cosponsored The Smartphone Theft Prevention Act introduced last week by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) that would require all phones sold in the United States to include kill switch technology free of charge that would allow the consumer to remotely wipe their personal data off the phone, render the phone permanently inoperable to anyone but the owner, and prevent it from being reactivated on a network by anyone but the owner. This legislation is supported by a broad coalition of key stakeholders, such as the Major Cities Chiefs Association, members of the Secure Our Smartphones Initiative including founders New York

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and San Francisco District Attorney George Gascn, and the Consumers Union. The Senator has also cosponsored The Mobile Device Theft Deterrence Act, legislation introduced by Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that would support cell phone bricking, in which a phone reported as stolen is rendered permanently inoperable. While the FCC already supports bricking through a national database that records smartphones unique identifying numbers (IMEIs), this new legislation would make it a federal crime to alter the IMEI of a phone to circumvent the database. This would add teeth to the stolen cell phone registry, which just became operational late last year. According to the Federal Communications Commission, nearly one-in-three robberies involve cell phone theft, with criminals targeting smartphones for their high resale value and for the valuable personal and financial information they contain. Every day, an average of two electronic devices are snatched from Metro riders. This number has risen from 424 cases in 2012 to 603 cases in 2013. ###