App traces lost cellphones, even if batteries die

Dick Uliano, wtop.com

WASHINGTON – It can be alarming to misplace a cellphone, especially when it’s chock-full of phone numbers that people spend years collecting.

Is it at work, at school, at home or in the car? It can be a frustrating search, especially as the cellphone battery is dying.

But a lost phone with a dead battery is not a problem if the phone is equipped with a new app by San Francisco-based Lookout Mobile Security.

As the battery fades, the app sends a GPS signal, flagging the cellphone’s last location and vastly improving the owner’s chances of finding it. The cellphone owner retrieves the location data by logging on to a preset account on the Lookout website.

The app also promises to protect a smartphone from dialer-based attacks, scanning all numbers clicked from a mobile browser.

The Lookout Mobile Security is available in free and premium versions for both Android and iPhone.

Download the app here.

Follow WTOP on Twitter.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up