Everyone knows that Apple mobile devices are the safest on the market with built-in tracking software and the company's patented lockout feature. However, iPhones and iOS mobile devices are stolen more often than Android, Windows or Blackberry devices. The built-in security features are undoubtedly better than other mobile operating systems, but that doesn't stop iPhones from being the most commonly stolen mobile devices along with other iOS devices such as iPods, iPads and laptops. Even so, all those proprietary security features aren't reliable enough to prevent theft and this is why third-party tracking software for Mac and iOS is in great demand.

The Financial Impact of a Lost or Stolen iPhone

While iPhones are by no stretch of the imagination cheap, the real cost of the phone isn't just the purchase price. Businesses and private individuals suffer more from data breaches than from the actual loss of the mobile device and that carries a huge financial burden each and every year. Companies may be able to track their missing device, but can they recover all the data that's been hacked? With so many remote workers in the field every day of the year, this is causing huge losses for businesses and the ultimate cost could be that they are bankrupt as a result. Whether you are a private individual or a corporation seeking to recover your lost or stolen device, nine times out of ten you are more worried about pictures and data files on the phone which may be irretrievable.

How Other Operating Systems Match Up

The second most commonly targeted mobile devices are cell phones with an Android operating system. Unfortunately, Android just doesn't have the security features that iOS has and this gives them a double disadvantage. If your Mac is stolen, you can use the built-in tracking software or even better third-party security apps such as those from Hidden, but with an Android, you usually need to download a tracking app from the Google Play Store. We've mentioned the Hidden tracking app for a very good reason which will be addressed in just a moment. The point being made here is that with any other OS than Mac devices, you typically need to download a third-party app.

The Need for Security Greater Than Mac's Built-in Trackers

With Mac's built-in trackers, you can do things like lock the phone from any other device, enable GPS tracking to show the location of your lost or stolen device and even wipe it clean so that any data not yet stolen can be wiped off the device. Hidden, on the other hand, goes beyond those core features. With a program like this, you can use the device's camera to take a picture of the person in possession of your device, log the keys they are using to better understand what they are doing with your device and even take screenshots of what they are doing at any given moment. While this may be beneficial to private consumers, it is huge in terms of corporate loss. Remember, the loss of just one mobile device can yield a data breach so significant it can drive an SMB out of business.

No matter what kind of mobile device you own, it pays to go above and beyond any build-in security apps. Few people, private or corporate, can afford to lose the device, let alone all the data that phone has access to. Whether it is on the phone or in the Cloud, anyone in possession of that phone can gain access if it hasn't been reported and locked by the provider. By that time, how much data have you lost? That's the magic question and why device tracking software in 2019 needs to go beyond any proprietary apps built into any operating systems on the market today. Can you afford to sustain a major data breach? That's the $64,000 question of the day.

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