Lookout Mobile Security released a new feature for the app on Wednesday called "Theft Alerts" to help prevent smartphone robberies.
Users will receive emails whenever something suspicious is done to their phones, such as a person trying to uninstall the security software or enter a wrong password too many times, according to CNET.
The phone also takes a photo of the thief with a front-facing camera. The picture, which Lookout calls a "theftie", along with a map of the device's location, is sent to the owner of the phone in an email.
The app lets users switch individual functions on or off, PC Magazine reported.
"From the day we started Lookout, we've dedicated ourselves to fighting smartphone theft, said Kevin Mahaffey, CTO of Lookout. "Today, the problem has grown so large that nearly 70 percent of phone theft victims never get their phone back. This is not right."
The company reported recently that over one in 10 owners of smartphones are victims of phone robberies. These robberies mostly take place in a bar or restaurant, at work, on public transportation, or on the street. 68 percent of these victims didn't recover their stolen phones.
Lookout is based in San Francisco, Calif., where the rate of smartphone thefts has grown to 67 percent of robberies. The same number increased to over 75 percent in Oakland, CNET reported.
With the email alert, users can also contact their carrier about the stolen or lost device and file a police report.
Lookout Premium can be downloaded in the Google Play Store or the iTunes App Store for $2.99 per month. Customers can get access to Theft Alerts along with addition protection for security and privacy, according to PC Magazine.
The app can also be downloaded for an annual fee of $29.99.
While the photo-taking feature has been criticized as a breach of privacy, David Richardson, lead product manager for iOS at Lookout, said the photo is justified by the actions thieves take that trigger the snapshot, and that the photos are just "reactive", CNET reported.
Theft Alerts is just another method used by companies to fight smartphone robberies, while government officials have been trying to have "kill switches" mandatorily installed in phones to make them inoperable when stolen. Minnesota became the first state in the U.S. to a pass a "kill-switch" bill earlier this month, and a similar bill passed the California Senate this month.
