The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) and its wireless carrier members today announced that they have launched a national blacklist of lost and stolen wireless devices. Effective today, GSM, HSPA, HSPA+ or LTE wireless devices looking for authorization on a participating carrier’s network will have their IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number checked against the blacklist. Should the check return positive, the device will not be authorized to connect.
“Canadians are among the world’s fastest adopters and heaviest users of sophisticated smartphones,” said CWTA President & CEO Bernard Lord. “Not only will this national blacklist help to make their smartphones a less valuable target for criminals, but the industry has also taken steps to help Canadian consumers identify if a pre-owned device has previously been reported as lost or stolen.”
The CWTA will also make it easy to check the IMEI when purchasing a wireless device from a private source. Its ProtectYourData.ca website now includes a simple lookup tool to ensure that the device is not lost or stolen.
The CWTA blacklist uses the GSMA IMEI Database, includes blacklisted devices that have been reported as lost or stolen as of September 30, 2013 and beyond. It also includes devices reported by US carriers who are also connected to the GSMA IMEI database.
One tip: Check back several times if your device was just stolen as it can take up to 48 hours for a reported device to be added to the database.
Source : CWTA