Now, Android app to help users protect mobile devices, data

Android users can now use an app to protect their mobile devices and personal data. Phound!, derived from the words Phone and Hound, helps to find a lost gadget quickly and keep any valuable information stored on it away from prying eyes.

According to a survey of Internet users, one respondent in 20 on an average and as many as one in six for some countries lost their smartphone or tablet as a result of carelessness or theft over a one year period. At the same time, 38% of users admitted that their devices contained confidential data that they would definitely not want to fall into the wrong hands. Phound!, an app developed by Kaspersky Lab, was developed to prevent this kind of alarming situation.

Phound! offers gadget owners the ability to control their devices and the data stored on them remotely, via the My Kaspersky portal. If a device is lost or stolen, users can quickly block it to prevent unauthorized access, as well as using GPS, GSM or Wi-Fi networks to find its position on the map. To make searching for the device easier, users can also take pictures with the front camera or bring up a message on the device's screen.

If the telephone or tablet was lost at home or in the office, it can be found with the help of the Alarm feature - the device makes a loud sound and continues until the owner enters a secret code. As a last resort, the owner can use Phound! to remove all personal data from the device and the SD card remotely, including contacts, messages, photos etc., as well as perform a hard reset of the device, if required.

"For many users, mobile devices serve as storage for their most valuable and important data - contacts of friends and colleagues, personal messages, private photos and many other things. This means that today's smartphones and tablets need the same security as a bank vault. However, unlike bank vaults, smartphones are small, portable and easily misplaced. That is why we created a solution for our users to prevent their mobile 'vault' from falling into the wrong hands," said Alexey Chikov, Senior Product Manager, Kaspersky Lab.

Kaspersky Phound! is now available in 8 languages from Google Play Store, the official app store for Android. This app complements the Kaspersky Lab portfolio of free and freemium mobile products for home users, which includes Kaspersky Safe Browser for iOS and Windows Phone, Kaspersky QR Scan, Kaspersky Threat Scan, Kaspersky Internet Security for Android and Kaspersky Password Manager for iOS and Android.