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Mobile Phone Safety

If you have a mobile phone you need to make sure you keep yourself and your mobile safe. The number of mobiles being stolen is rising so make sure you keep it in a safe place or on your person.

Nearly half of all victims are under the age of 18 and in the UK a mobile phone is stolen every three minutes, so here are some handy hints to make sure you don't become one of those people and add to the statistics!

Some of the best ways to keep you and your mobile safe are:

• Keep your phone safe and out of sight.
• Only give your number to your friends.
• Avoid using your phone in the street. If you need to call someone in a public place, be discrete but be somewhere where you can see what is happening around you.
• Use a PIN code to lock your phone.
• If you're walking alone put your phone on silent or vibrate so your ring tone doesn't draw attraction to you.
• If you're alone, be aware while walking and texting at the same time - you need to keep alert!
• If taking a lift or taxi - if you feel uncomfortable text the registration number of the vehicle to someone you trust.
• Security mark your phone with a postcode and house number. The best place is underneath the battery near to the SIM card.
• Many mobiles are stolen in public places like cinemas, pubs and nightclubs when they are left on a bar, table or on a seat.
• Don't leave your phone in an unattended car - if you must, lock it out of sight and turn it off or onto silent. It takes seconds for a thief to smash a window and enter a car.
• Most phones will allow you to call 999 even if you have no credit left.

What else can I do?

Take a look at the 'Teach ur mum 2 txt' campaign on the Milly's Fund website. It can be embarrassing if your parents or carer calls you whilst you're with your mates, but if you both know how to text, you can quickly contact each other without anyone knowing. Then, everyone will be happy and you will feel better that someone knows where you are and who you're with.

The aim of the campaign is to teach you parents or carers how to:

• Send and receive text messages.
• Use punctuation and symbols.
• Use predictive text (if available).
• Set up a phone book and store your friends' numbers in it in case of emergency.

Who can help?

The Metropolitan Police offer lots of great advice and information on mobile phone safety on their website at www.met.police.uk/crimeprevention/phone.htm.

Take this CBBC Newsround quiz to find out how much you know about mobile phone safety: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/quiz/newsid_1749000/1749309.stm.

You can speak to a Personal Adviser at your local Connexions Centre. To find your local centre click on the Local Services icon in the footer of the homepage or check out your local phone book.

You can contact a Connexions Direct Adviser by phone on 080 800 13 2 19, by text on 07766 4 13 2 19, by textphone 08000 968 336, by adviser online or by email.