Phone Guardian by Symbian Guru
Aside from the OS, there’s one thing that all S60 3rd devices have in common - they’re valuable! Besides the monetary value, our devices store tons of important information, files, pictures and more that I for one would be lost without! Beyond personal data, devices are becoming more and more integrated with many aspects of life (don’t say convergence, don’t say convergence). As Dameon and others have discussed in various posts, what happens when you lose your device? Well my second favorite Symbian Guru has made recovering your lost or stolen mobile much more likely with their awesome app Phone Guardian.
Phone Guardian is an extremely useful security tool for S60 3rd devices. Simply put, it is a tool that locks all use of your device in the event that it is lost or stolen. Beyond that, maybe you don’t want people browsing through your gallery or messages. Phone Guardian can also password protect any and every app in your device so that only you can access them! I know that this feature alone will make a lot of people happy…
The first task once Phone Guardian is installed is to set your private password. DON’T FORGET IT! This is the password that you will use to access the app to change settings, and to lock and unlock your phone. The app itself is password protected (as is the uninstallation) so that not just anyone can access it and adjust the settings.
The best way to go through this app is to just run down the feature list, so we’ll start at the top. The first option in the main interface allows you to enable or disable the app as you see fit. Once enabled, the Phone Guardian process runs in the background consuming a minimal amount of RAM, and of course it autostarts. Next you’ll find the Lock Mode option. This allows you to lock your device when the SIM card is changed, when you send the lock SMS, or in both instances. The lock SMS feature allows you to send a specially formatted SMS to your device (from any mobile) that Phone Guardian will automatically detect and once received, your device will be locked until the password is entered or a similarly formatted unlock SMS is received (yes you can lock and unlock it remotely - could be a nice tool for parents ;) ).
The next feature is the Alarm which once enabled, sounds an audible alarm when the phone is locked. Beneath this setting you will find your Lock Message which to me is of the utmost importance. Add a message about a reward! In this day and age, your best bet in getting your phone back if lost or stolen is to offer a reward. If a thief sees this message, once they realize that your phone is basically useless to them they will likely try to claim that they found your phone in order to collect. If someone genuinely does find your lost device, a reward for returning this priceless possession is certainly a nice gesture.
The next two fields allow you to enter two mobile numbers that will receive an Alarm SMS in the event that your phone is locked (as a result of a SIM change or remote lock SMS that you send). This SMS will have some valuable information including your IMEI and IMSI to report to carriers for blocking, and the number that sent the SMS (useful for identifying the thief if they changed the SIM) along with the cell IDs registered by the phone at the time the SMS was sent (useful for authorities to locate the device).
Lastly you will find an Autolock option that will lock the device automatically after an amount of idle time that you configure, or you can disable this feature. Note that autolock will not generate an alarm SMS of course.
Beyond the option to change your password, the main function found in the Options menu is the Protected Apps list. This gives you a list of every app on your device and allows you to choose which apps should be password protected. Selected apps will not be accessible until the password is entered.
Symbian Guru offers a free five-day trial for this great app but if you ask me, US $12 is hardly a tall price to pay for an app that really does help protect your $300-$800+ investment. Version 1 can be found on their site now but from what I understand, version 2 is very close to being released and adds some great additional functionality.
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At first glance, it sounded like Ricky developed this app.
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@kriegspiel
I think that it's a safe bet that just about every payware app will require a license code that is tied to your IMEI. This is done for obvious reasons. If you are considering purchasing this app and you may get a new device soon, you should contact the developer first and discuss this with them. More often than not, you'll find that the developer will be more than happy to transfer your license to the new device.
And thanks for the kind words!
@JonnyBruha
Thanks Jonny! I try to cover as much as I can without getting too boring... ;)
As far as your question is concerned, I'll be interested to see what you find - I haven't seen much (if any) difference in battery life. To minimize battery drain you should definitely install to your phone memory btw, but I'm sure you knew that.
Actually, I have a post that I'll probably publish today about this very subject - battery life/RAM. I actually take a stance on the other side of the fence so hopefully people don't attack me too much! ;)
@Chirantan
This is actually a REALLY cool feature. It's simple:
To lock your phone remotely, send an SMS (from any device) with the formatting:
:l:PASSWORD
(note that the character above is an 'L', not a 1)
To unlock the device remotely, send:
:u:PASSWORD
So if you've lost your phone, the first thing you should do is send the above lock SMS to your mobile number! As long as you have Phone Guardian configured to lock on SIM change, this will cover all the bases.
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First, my phone blinks a couple extra times when it starts up because of the application. Not a big deal, but still a bit annoying.
Second, the indicator to show that an application is open (present in FP1 phones) is constantly showing that I have an application in my Tools folder that is open (since Phone Guardian is stored in the Tools folder).
Third, I can not view my phones processes with Best Taskman anymore since the application locks out any app that would even potentially be able to close it. That's pretty secure, but also a pain if I want to use Taskman to stop a different process.
Having tested the lock feature by sending the lock SMS to my phone, it definitely works as advertised. Very impressive stuff.
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Regarding Best Taskman, I stopped using that app a while ago but I am able to access all tasks/processes with ActiveFile and SwissKnife9 while Phone Guardian is running. I'll try to install Best Taskman later and check it out.
Regarding FP1, I can't comment because my FP1 device is still delayed in shipping. :( I would say to definitely take to Symbian Guru about this.
And the remote lock feature is pretty awesome!
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This is really an awesome app . But just out of curiosity - i wish to know - how do they track the cell ID ... because i believe it's one of the most interesting features they have .
thanks
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I attempt to launch the app. I have set up following the manual and when I set the time to autolock - nothing happens, when I send the :l:Password via sms it doesn't lock either! On top of that, the review mentions two sms numbers (nope only 1) and NO application guard because it's for a later version. Deeply unimpressed with this. Will I get an upgrade to version 2 when it is released? Why can't I get it to work on my N95?
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and I want to use another sim-card ?
how do I uninstall it..
let say I`m on vacation around the world, and get a new sim-car (old was lost) and then your suddenly without a 800$ phone ??
thanx :)
But I think i will give this program a chance.
The feeling to KNOW that if someone use my phone, i get a sms with theyr number is very impressing :)
second question, do they enter PIN code so the phone boot normally and THEN locks ??
if not, the phone cannot send any SMS...
thanx one more time..
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I'm not sure that I fully understand your second question - but I think I do. In the event that you lose your phone or it is stolen, the first thing you should do is send the lock SMS to your own number. Then you're covered if:
1. The person who finds/steals the phone leaves your SIM in (it will then receive the SMS and lock).
2. The person who finds/steals your phone switches the SIM (if this setting is enabled - which it should be). Then even though your SMS will not be received, the phone will still lock due to the SIM switch.
I hope that helps! V2.00 is a huge improvement so if you're not sure about the app, definitely wait for v2.
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My question was this:
If the phone is Locked totally.
And the person that did steal it try to insert a sim-card!
The phone cannot POWER ON (becouse it`s locked?)
And if the phone cannot power On, how can the phone then send me a sms telling me about the info... ? :)
(but I guess the phone boot up, and then lock after it have connection to the nettwork, right?)
One more thing, if the person that steal my phone dont have money (nettwork) on the sim-card.. I never recive any "IMEI\IMSI" number :\
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The phone is always able to turn on even when Phone Guardian has locked it. Once it has been locked as a result of a SIM change or your lock SMS, it will only stay on the home screen and display the message shown in the second pair of pictures above (whatever message you enter).
So you're correct - the phone will boot up and then lock once the SMS is received - or once the SIM is changed.
Lastly, you are also correct that if the new SIM has no balance or no network then you will not receive the notification SMS until the SIM finds a network or has a new balance. That is why a lock message with your email and mention of a reward is a good idea. Maybe when the thief sees it he/she will just pretend that they found it and return it to your for the reward.
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I will surely post an update as soon as v2 is released. :)
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there is one problem that i have locked my phone with it and i had lost my sim card so how can i uninstall this application
Someone plz help me
i m in great trouble becasue my phone is locked with guardian and i had lost my sim card
plz help me with it
my email add is [email snipped]
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Anyone tried Version 2? they seem to have removed the protected Apps feature, at least in the trial version, what happened to that?
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Is it possible to reformat your s60 Third Edition phone without turning on and having it on the home screen first?For you to be able to to the hard and soft format using *#7370# and these procedures:
1. Switch off the phone.
2. Hold down the following three buttons: Green (call answer) button, * button, and '3' button
3. While holding these buttons, press the power button and switch on the phone
4. When the message 'Formatting' appears on the screen, release all of the buttons
Also is it possible to really block your phone or make it totally useless to thief by simply providing its IMEI to your service provider?
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What is the function of Cell Info there?What does it do?What is its purpose?..
Hope you can be able to answer all of my questions.
Your response is highly appreciated.
Thank you very much.
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Regarding the cell info, this will help the authorities work with your carrier to find the location of your device if they are willing to do so.
Hope that helps!
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