I’m always connected. I have a cell phone(samsung Galaxy 4) , two Samsung tablets (because obviously I need a 7 inch and 11 inch screen), and a MacBook. At any given time you can find me using at least one of these items, but more often than not, I’m using two devices at a time. Did you know that August is National Theft Awareness Month? Neither did I. Until I was contacted by the good people at Absolute Lojack to go #DigitallyDark. Let me explain. Last year, 3.1 million Americans had their smartphone stolen. Kids & teens are the highest risk target for mobile theft, with youth age 14-24 more than twice as likely to be victims of mobile theft. When your electronic devices are stolen  you are forced to “rough it” until you can get a replacement (if you can get one) and left to stress out about how the person who stole your property may misuse the information that’s on your device.

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My Theft Story

I once had my tablet stolen once, it was the 7 inch one, and it happened last fall in my night class. It was really weird, I literally went to the front of the classroom for 10 seconds to turn in my assignment and when I came back to begin taking notes on my tablet…it was gone…that quick! College universities and dormitories are a big target for theft. In fact, on a list that reveals the top ten  places where mobile device theft occurs, school is number one.  It is important to take extra precautions I had to file a police report and all the other things you have to do once  device is stolen, but I pretty much gave up hope that my tablet could be found. I had it for maybe two months, I hadn’t recorded the serial number or installed any kind of protective softwares on it. And to make matters worse…I financed it! So I had to continue paying for something that was no longer in my possession. At my university, we were having a big issue with personal property–especially mobile device theft–apparently it was a group of students stealing these items so that they could later sell them. Almost two months, I got a call from the university police that they had found an item matching the description of my stolen property and to come check it out. It was my tablet! They had found the thieves who had thousands of dollars worth of stolen electronic devices on their person.  Everyone is not so lucky though..87 percent of stolen devices are never recovered.

How Absolute Lojack Can Help

Absolute Lojack is a leader in theft recovery solutions. If your phone or mobile device is ever stolen, a team of investigators in conjunction with law enforcement personnel immediately start working to get your device back. Absolute Lojack installs software on your device that allow  you locate your device, lock it against unauthorized users, and permanently erase your files all from the comfort of your own home. What if the thieves reset your computer or phone to factory settings? Or completely replace  the hard drive? Or a new operating system is installed? Absolute persistence-technology can re-install the software each time to connect the device back to its original owner, eventually getting that device back to it’s owner where it belongs. And this doesn’t just work in the US. Absolute Lojack has located over 30,000 devices in over 100 countries. 

Going #DigitallyDark 

So what exactly is going #DigitallyDark? #DigitallyDark is voluntarily giving up one of your electronic devices to recreate the experience of what it would be like, if one of your devices were stolen. I will be giving up my cell phone on Sunday, August 17, so if you notice a slower response to comments, tweets, and messages, that’s why. I invite you to do this challenge with me and let me know your thoughts.

I’m thankful that this product has been gifted to me to protect my Samsung Galaxy 4 and I’m thankful for Absolute Lojack sponsoring this post.  I mean I was able to function without my tablet, because I had other devices, but my phone and my laptop are two items that I use daily. Starting August 19- August 26, I will be giving away 3 subscriptions to Absolute Lojack, so you may want to get a heads up on liking the Absolute Lojack Facebook Page. If you can’t wait that long or you want to get the product ASAP, use the offer code DARK30 to get 30% off of your purchase of subscription.

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Have you ever had a device stolen? Will you be joining me in the #DigitallyDark Challenge?