Smartphones and tablets should have built-in 'kill switch': California

Californian leaders want to make it compulsory for smartphones or tablets sold in the state to have built-in "kill switches" to counter the rocketing number of thefts of the devices.

State senator Mark Leno and other elected officials on Friday unveiled legislation requiring that new smartphones or tablets have technology that could be used to remotely render them useless.

Backers called the bill the first of its kind in the United States; opponents fear it may allow hackers to shut down people's devices.

"With robberies of smartphones reaching an all-time high, California cannot continue to stand by when a solution to the problem is readily available," said Leno, a Democrat representing San Francisco.

(Also see: US prosecutors push for 'kill switch' to prevent smartphone thefts)

"Today we are officially stepping in and requiring the cell-phone industry to take the necessary steps to curb violent smartphone thefts and protect the safety of the very consumers they rely upon to support their businesses."

The legislation would leave service providers or manufacturers, including iPhone maker Apple, facing fines if smartphones or tablets sold in California beginning next year don't include mechanisms to instantly disable them.

The bill will be introduced within a few months, according to Leno.

More than half of robberies in San Francisco involve mobile devices, and that share is three-quarters across the bay in the city of Oakland, according to Leno's office.

"The wireless industry must take action to end the victimization of its customers," San Francisco district attorney George Gascon said.

"This legislation will require the industry to stop debating the possibility of implementing existing technological theft solutions and begin embracing the inevitability."

(Also see: Samsung's offer to install 'kill switch' in its smartphones rejected)