The makers of iPhones, Apple, and the London Metropolitan Police (Met Police) have been testing a kill switch feature that renders stolen iPhones unusable. So far, the two institutions have had great success.
To stop thieves from reusing or reselling stolen devices, Apple updated its security system. Now, the police send the IMEI numbers of reported stolen iPhones to Apple, and the company remotely disables the devices.
What it means is that, without the owner’s password, a stolen iPhone can never be reactivated. This partnership is already disrupting a highly organised international business model worth millions.
“If stolen phones cannot be reactivated, their value collapses, and so does the incentive to steal them. We are driving up the risk for offenders while cutting off the reward,” says Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley.
In 2022, data show that nearly 70% of all thefts in London were related to mobile phones. Criminals then employ software to factory reset stolen phones, enabling their sale to new owners worldwide.
However, Apple believes it has now solved the engineering challenge, with early data indicating that the vast majority of phones stolen in London recently have not been successfully factory reset, and a good number have been recovered.
“The Met has reduced theft from the person and robbery offences where a mobile phone has been stolen by 14,000 over the last 12 months (June 2025-May 2026), an 18% reduction compared to the same period in the 12 months previous,” the London Met indicated in a statement.
In 2026 alone, phone theft has declined by over 20% from January to May 2026 compared to last year. This meant 6,700 fewer phones were stolen during the period. The progress is even more impressive in Westminster, a notorious hotspot for these crimes, where incidents slashed by nearly half (45.8%).
Speaking on this successful trial, Kate Adams, senior vice president of government affairs at Apple, said:
“Keeping our users, their devices, and their data safe is at the heart of what we do. That includes building industry-leading security features that significantly reduce the motivation for criminals to target people in the first place.”
Now buoyed by the success in London, Apple has announced they are rolling out the kill switch feature worldwide. Law enforcement can now hand Apple a list of devices, and the company disables them globally.
These updates follow a two-and-a-half-year campaign by the Metropolitan Police. Other tech giants like Samsung and Google are also introducing security changes to combat the problem.
While this feature solves the reuse of stolen phones, it doesn’t solve the problems of phones that are stolen for parts after being disassembled.
