FCC Chief's Stolen Cellphone Letters to Carrier CEOs Ask for Quick Action

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler sent letters, as promised Thursday, to wireless carrier CEOs requiring them to lay out steps they will take by the end of Q1 to combat smartphone theft (see 1412040049), FCC officials confirm. The letters weren't posted by the commission. Wheeler asks the CEOs to describe specific steps they're taking to ensure all phones can be locked, wiped and restored, to protect unique identifiers for every device and to improve “the timeliness, accuracy and availability of data about smartphone theft for use by law enforcement,” said one of the letters made available to media. “I would also ask you to take appropriate steps to ensure that employees in your retail and authorized reseller affiliates understand the importance of their role in preventing mobile device theft by checking the appropriate database to ensure that every device they initialize for service has not been reported lost or stolen.” Wheeler said he would send the letters, in remarks Thursday to the FCC Technological Advisory Council. CTIA supports FCC efforts to curb smartphone thefts, said Jamie Hastings, vice president-external and state affairs, in a statement. But Hastings questioned the deadlines in the Wheeler letter, which were not part of the TAC’s stolen phone report. “We must all work together to achieve our shared objectives as soon practical, but we need to be careful in setting artificial deadlines on some stakeholders with respect to implementing technical changes,” Hastings said.