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INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Enterprise Security
Around 23,000 devices go missing
every month, says Kaspersky Lab
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Research from Kaspersky Lab shows that
38% of South Africans have lost their
devices, or had them stolen
T
he holiday season has started and
that means that millions of people
will go for a trip abroad. And while
they are on holiday, many will be taking the
opportunity to capture precious memories of
their time away.
In fact, according to Kaspersky Lab’s
consumer research, 15% of South Africans
say photos and videos of their travel are
the most important forms of data on their
devices, with this type of data trumping all
others. However, in additional research by
the company, 38% said that if they lost
their devices, or had them stolen, they would
never be able to replace those precious
holiday photos.
According to Kaspersky Lab stats, the
company’s Anti-Theft feature in its
Kaspersky Internet Security for Android
product is launched 1.5 times every minute
on average globally, and an average 23,000
www.intelligentcio.com
Android devices are being reported lost or
stolen a month. With photos of travel being
rated the most important to users, out of all
other data stored on their devices, Kaspersky
Lab is warning people to treat their precious
holiday snaps with care, by properly
protecting the devices they are captured
and stored on across the summer season.
Otherwise, their photos may join the ranks of
the lost and stolen.
Another study by Kaspersky Lab has shown
that overall, 14% of people in South Africa
have lost a device or had one stolen. What’s
more, for over half (59%) of those people,
it’s Android devices that were affected,
followed by laptop computers (20%)
and Apple iPhones (9%). Worryingly for
consumers, on average a lost or stolen device
can cost US$510 to replace.
With simple and effective anti-theft tools
available, consumers now have the chance
to turn on their device’s alarm if it gets lost,
lock and locate their device remotely, or even
take a secret mugshot of the culprit if their
device has been stolen. Yet despite the risks,
and the availability of these security options,
Kaspersky Lab research shows that only
30% of South Africans are currently taking
advantage of anti-theft features to help
protect their devices.
Dmitry Aleshin, VP for Product Marketing,
Kaspersky Lab said, “These figures indicate
the scale at which devices are going missing
– especially as the 23,000 figure only tells
us about Android devices with the Kaspersky
Lab Anti-Theft feature switched on.
At this time of year, it’s important to consider
how to safeguard devices from danger. With
Anti-Theft protection being so simple to use
and so easily available, our advice to all users
is to consider protecting their devices and to
have a safe and secure summer.” n
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