Over the past few years, manufacturers have made great strides to discourage smartphone theft. These are usually locking mechanisms, which block the phone from ever being used by someone else than its user — either through biometric scanners or the good old passcode. And if a thief tries to reset your device, it will usually become a brick, which will not activate unless your personal password is entered on boot.

But that hasn't stopped thieves entirely. For one, they like to try their chances — some users still don't lock their phones. And two, some phones can still be hacked into after ...