Sony is rolling out its remote security service “my Xperia,” worldwide after piloting it in the Nordic countries in January.
Sony has informed that the service will be extended to users of Sony Xperia smartphones in the coming weeks. The service is essentially delivered in the form of a remote security app that will enable users to locate and protect their Xperia smartphone and their personal data stored on the device, if it gets misplaced. Users will be able to download the service through Sony’s Update Center app.
Once activated through the phone’s settings via the ‘Xperia’ settings option, users will be able to sign in with their Google credentials to the my Xperia website(myxperia.sonymobile.com) and get remote access to their phone. Users will be able to sound an alert overriding the silent mode and wake the display, through the web interface of the service. They’ll also be able to map the location of their phone through the service, remotely lock the phone to keep their data private and wipe the phone erasing data from both internal and external storage, if required.
Sony currently offers almost the same functionality through the McAfee Security app with limited functions and limited period validity, in some regions.
While third party services offered by companies like Norton, Quickheal and Kaspersky, among others also offer mobile security services, they charge users a one time or recurring fee. With Sony rolling out its own security services, users will be able to benefit from these free of charge. In fact, remote security services are increasingly becoming standard with Apple offering its Find My iPhone, BlackBerry phones coming with BlackBerry Protect and Samsung and HTC phones coming with their own suite of security services, out of the box.
