Mobile phone theft - crime prevention advice

Mobile phone theft - crime prevention advice

Here’s the latest on mobile phone theft in your area.

Mobile phones remain one of the most commonly stolen items, particularly in busy town centres, transport hubs and the night-time economy. A few simple precautions can significantly reduce your chances of becoming a victim.

• Keep your phone out of sight when not in use. Avoid walking with your phone in your hand or leaving it on tables in bars, restaurants or cafés.

• Be aware of your surroundings when using your phone in public, especially near roads where thieves on bicycles, e-bikes or mopeds may target people using their devices.

• Enable security features such as facial recognition, fingerprint unlock and strong passcodes.

• Turn on device tracking features such as Find My iPhone or Find My Device to help locate your phone if it is lost or stolen.

• Make a note of your phone's IMEI number by dialling *#06#. This can assist police and network providers if your device is stolen.

• Avoid storing PINs, passwords or sensitive information in unsecured notes or messages on your device.

• Consider using anti-theft settings and ensure your phone's software is kept up to date.

If your phone is stolen, report it to your network provider immediately to block the device and SIM card, and report the theft to police as soon as possible.

By remaining vigilant and taking simple preventative measures, we can work together to reduce mobile phone theft and keep Camden safe.

We’ve put hundreds more officers on the frontlines of community crime-fighting teams, upping visible patrols in the right ‘hot spots’ so we can deter and catch criminals. These officers are working hard to bear down on mobile phone crime in London, arresting phone thieves on the street, shutting down vendors trading stolen devices and dismantling international criminal gangs.

We have now almost halved phone theft in Westminster, where it was most concentrated, following an intensive crackdown which has seen hundreds of arrests and thousands of phones recovered. After campaigning by the Met, Apple has also made a global change to its security system that better ensures stolen phones cannot be reused or resold – disrupting a highly organised international business model worth millions.

But we know there is more to do. That’s why we’re stepping up our use of technology, increasing our operations and working with phone companies to make it less appealing for criminals to commit these crimes in the first place.

You can report an incident of theft online at https://www.met.police.uk.