Google and Microsoft smartphones will become inoperable if thieves take them from consumers, thanks to soon-to-be installed kill switches on the next versions of Android, iOS and Windows mobile devices.
A date hasn't yet been determined for the kill switch-equipped operating system's release.
After declaring their mobile device misplaced or taken, the person who lost the phone or fell victim to a theft will soon be able to shut it down when they enter their username and password from a remote location, according to the Associated Press.
"The commitments of Google and Microsoft are giant steps toward consumer safety and the statistics released today illustrate the stunning effectiveness of kill switches," said New York state attorney general Eric Schneiderman to the The New York Daily News about the tech giant's efforts to join Apple in enhancing phone safety.
Schneiderman also collaborated on efforts to help secure users' information from unauthorized access with San Francisco district attorney general George Gascon.
"Compared to all of the cool things smartphones can do these days, this is not that advanced," Gascon told AP. "I believe ending the victimization of millions of Americans is the coolest thing a smartphone can do."
Google currently operates its Android operating system on over 50 percent of mobile devices throughout the United States, while Microsoft runs Windows software on its eponymous phone.
Apple saw thefts of their iPhone mobile device drop in the first five months of 2014 after unveiling their own activation lock on the gadget in Sept. 2013. The tech giant uses its own iOS on company-made devices. The activation lock caused robberies of the iPhone to fall 19 percent - 10 percent below grand larceny crimes of the smartphone and other Apple products - which fell 29 percent, according to a report recently released by the New York Police Department titled, "Secure Our Smartphone Initiative: One Year Later."
