Service makes stolen phones scream

The product, called Remote XT after the company that created it, is designed for application on smart handsets. Remote XT joins other mobile-phone security services in the U.K. such as Synchronia's Mobile Manager, which is designed to make a Windows Mobile-based handset emit a high-pitched wail when stolen.

It is primarily targeted at the high end of the market, typically business users who may hold confidential data, such as e-mails, on their phones.

"By making mobiles unusable to anyone but the rightful owner the phones become worthless and we will see the market for stolen handsets stamped out once and for all," said Mark Whiteman, managing director of Remote XT.