From yesterday’s post on Apple Watch and theft:
It will be interesting to see if Apple ultimately adds in an Activation Lock feature for future versions of Apple Watch. I suspect this will become more likely if we start seeing a wave of Apple Watch thefts.
Rene Ritchie, writing for iMore:
No regular watch has a passcode or password, much less online theft-deterrent system, including those sold by Seiko, Timex, Omega, or Rolex. Because the Apple Watch stores some amount of personal data on it, it however, it does have value and risk beyond a regular watch. To mitigate that, you can set the Apple Watch passcode/password system to erase all data after 10 failed attempts.
An excellent suggestion. Some people have pointed out that regular watches have as much street value (at least for now) as a high end Apple Watch and yet no one complains about a lack of some form of theft deterrence on those watches. This is true, but the Apple Watch is a different beast altogether. Over time, we’ll likely store more and more private data on our Apple Watches and the need to protect that data and the need for some form of theft protection will increase.
Activation Lock and Find My Apple Watch will solve both problems, if and when it ever arrives.
The frustrating part here is that the Apple Watch has all the elements in place to offer Activation Lock, and so the potential to offer even better security.
Apple knows this, of course. They’re the ones who put it all there. My strong suspicion is that they simply have implemented the Watch-specific process for it all just yet. The Watch is unique in several ways — it’s brand new, it has more limited input options, and it requires a paired iPhone to go online.
Your iPhone has an IP address and can communicate with all your other internet connected devices, as well as with Apple’s security systems.
Your Apple Watch does have WiFi, and a device specific address that can uniquely identify your Apple Watch to the universe. I’ve been talking with the twitterverse and, so far, can’t see anything specific preventing Apple from implementing Find My Apple Watch. There’s no GPS, but there is WiFi and location services can use WiFi to home in on an approximate location. And WiFi can be used to check in at a server to see if a particular Apple Watch has been reported stolen and should be deactivated.
This is all conjecture on my part. Not sure if and when Find My Apple Watch and Activation Lock are coming, but certainly an interesting discussion.
Not sure if you need Activation Lock. Since the Apple Watch is an extension of your iPhone, security should work accordingly.
1) Once you pair an Apple Watch to an iPhone it should be tied to that device and not allow you to bypass, reset, or pair with another device, unless you enter in your passcode. Unlike what has been shown in videos. This would prevent anyone from stealing a watch, since it can’t be used with another phone, etc.
2) As suggested, the device can be setup to wipe the data after a number of unsuccessful attempts. However, the password should not be wiped. This renders the Watch useless as well since it now has no data and is still locked with the passcode initially set. access through the diagnostic port shouldn’t bypass this feature, since that will be the next move criminals use to try and gain access.
3) Once removed from your wrist, the watch should automatically lock requiring a passcode. Don’t own one yet so can’t confirm if this happens.
4) For an extra layer of security, Apple could enable 2 factor authentication in which you not only need to enter in your passcode, when locked or removed from your wrist or if you want to pair with another iPhone. Once you choose to wipe, reset, or unpair you would be texted with a a code to your registered devices. (not ever a watch) but any iPads, iPhones or registered email addresses.
“Your iPhone has an IP address” Only transiently.
Exactly like a MacBook or a Wifi only iPad, both of which can use Find My X