U.S. Carriers to Disable Stolen Phones by IMEI

Major U.S. mobile operators and the FCC have agreed to set-up a database of stolen phones. This will enable permanent bans of these devices on U.S. networks based on their International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers rather than the SIM cards. U.S. Senator Charles Schumer plans to introduce legislation that would make it a federal crime to alter a device's International Mobile Equipment Identity number.


Internationally, the GSMA's Central Equipment Identity Register maintains a database of the IMEI numbers of blacklisted handsets.http://schumer.senate.govhttp://imeidb.gsm.org/imei/