lock

If somebody tries and fails to access your phone three times, Android phones running today's update to Lookout Mobile Security (download) will be able to take a photo of the culprit.

Two new features today bolster the app's already robust security options. The Lock Cam feature -- which Lookout said in a blog post announcing the changes will be rolled out over the next week to free users -- takes a photo using your phone's front-facing camera, records the location data based on your phone's GPS, and then sends the package to your e-mail account.

If … Read more

Unlocking your phone FBI-style with a fingerprint seems like a neat idea, but it's harder than it looks. Fingerprint Lock Screen tries to play on that idea to prank your friends, but it doesn't even work very well at that. If you can even get past the ads to try to set the app up, it's buggy and can be easily worked around.

The app claims it can fool your friends into thinking your phone recognizes your fingerprint. How it's supposed to work is that you scan the image of your fingerprint and add your name … Read more

Unlocking your phone will seem very high tech with this application, but in reality it's just a trick. Fingerprint Scanner Lock will have access to most of your personal information while giving nothing in return.

Before you install Fingerprint Scanner Lock, the program requires full access to your data. It requests access to your phone records, texts, personal information, messages, phone book, current location, and the ability to change the contents of your SD card. Once downloaded it also requires that you agree to a long list of terms and conditions regarding your privacy. The user interface is well … Read more

Android 4.2 is full of new features, some are fairly minor, such as the Settings shortcut in the notification bar. Other features, such an improved photo editing process, are bound to have a bigger impact on the overall user experience.

Here are five new features you can find in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, with the sixth item being a workaround should you decide against lock-screen widgets.

Developer Options Developer Options is an important settings menu for developers and those who like to fiddle with their Android device. For whatever reason in Android 4.2, Google hid the Developer … Read more

At first glance, the lock screen widgets in Android 4.2 may seem like a convenient feature. But you may soon realize having all of your personal information plastered on what was once a secure screen, isn't ideal. Removing the widgets is simple, but you're still left with the box outlines every time you wake your device, which can get annoying. And there's no way to disable widgets, or camera access for that matter, on the lock screen built into Android 4.2.

Thankfully, an Android developer has released a free app titled Lockscreen Policy, enabling you … Read more

Earlier this week Google released a new line of Nexus devices along with a small update to the Android operating system itself. Android 4.2 Jelly Bean includes a few new features for both smartphones and tablets alike.

One of the new features included in Android 4.2 is the addition of widgets to the lock screen. These widgets (a total of five currently available) provide a preview of your inbox, the clock, messages, calendar, or a shortcut to your camera and a widget to quickly identify a song.

You'll, of course, need to be running Android … Read more

This privacy tool aims to put you in the driver's seat by letting you restrict access to your PC. However, we had difficulty applying some of our restrictions.

InTouch Lock has a seemingly straightforward user interface, which can be accessed from your taskbar. A menu on the left side of the window organizes your system into access categories, including files, system, shell, devices, Internet, and applications. Within each of those categories are options for hiding your taskbar, disabling your desktop, lock files and Control Panel applets. The Lock Screen function worked, as did the Task feature, which successfully logged … Read more

Enter our week-long Threadless contest for a chance to win one of three Threadless T-shirts -- one lucky winner will receive a $30 gift certificate to the Threadless Web Store. Just follow us on Twitter and @reply us a photo of your favorite T-shirt along with the hash tag #404Threadless. We'll select the winners next Monday. Good luck!… Read more

A pair of iPhone owners are suing Apple to get their handsets unlocked.

Zach Ward and Thomas Buchar filed a putative class action lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Northern California on Friday alleging that the tech giant violated antitrust laws by locking iPhone buyers into voice and data contracts with AT&T Mobility. The plaintiffs claim that Apple violated the Sherman Act's prohibition on monopolization by not obtaining consumers' contractual consent to have their iPhones locked when the tech giant entered into a five-year exclusivity agreement with the wireless carrier in 2007.

To enforce the terms … Read more