Wireless carriers to create "blacklist" to fight smartphone theft

OTTAWA - Wireless carriers are taking action to create a national system in Canada that would blacklist lost or stolen smartphones and keep them from being reactivated. Until now when a phone was reported lost or stolen carriers would suspend service to the device. But there were no measures in place to stop the person who stole it, or bought it from the thief, from reactivating the phone under a new account. The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) and Canada's wireless carriers are pledging to assist law enforcement agencies with their efforts to combat the theft of wireless devices. By...