New research has been carried out by security firm Credant into just how safe mobile phone users are from the threat of data theft. The results are quite shocking, and suggest that up to 4.2 million people across the country are at risk of becoming victims of identity theft due to sensitive data being stored on their mobile handsets.

Credant interviewed a selection of London commuters for its research, and the figures reveal that more and more people are saving data on their phones that is potentially sensitive without realising the dangers that this represents to them or to the people whose details they hold on the handsets.

The research found that 24% of those interviewed kept their passwords or pin numbers on their phones, and that 10% store credit card information. But despite that, only 6 in 10 people use a password to protect their phones, meaning they are leaving them open to abuse if the handsets are stolen.

And it’s not just personal details that are being put at risk. 99% of those interviewed used their phones to conduct business of some sort, meaning the contact details of colleagues and clients are being put at risk as well.

One of the reasons that the problem is so large is the proliferation of smartphones. As phone handsets have become ever more capable and people have become increasingly dependent on them, more and more data is being stored on them. Although this is very convenient, it is putting a greater number of people at risk.

Experts say that if you are going to keep sensitive data on your phone then password protection or even data encryption is essential in order to reduce the risks.

Graham Cluley, who is the senior technology consultant for the security firm Sophos, said after reading the findings that for people storing sensitive data on their phones, they “must ensure it's protected by a good password - or even better a pass-phrase”.

Hard-pressed Vodafone customers are to be offered a new money-saving gimmick by the mobile operator. The company has just released ‘Freedom Packs’, its way of helping its customers to pay less for a lot more, and they are certain to prove popular in these cash-strapped times.

The 'Freedom Packs' are available to PAYG customers only, and consist of rewards for topping up with a certain amount. If customers top up by £10 in one go, they will receive 300 texts and 100 minutes of phone calls, which is worth £50 normally.

This is a phenomenal deal, but if customers top up by £15 or £20 in one go then the rewards are even greater. £15 leads to 600 texts and 200 minutes of talk time, double the amount of the £10 top-up, and £20 leads to unlimited texts and 300 minutes.

The bonuses will last for 30 days from the moment that they have been topped up, providing plenty of time for customers to take advantage of the features.

Vodafone is already one of the leaders when it comes to the PAYG mobile market. Other offers that the company already has are its ‘Free Weekends’ deal and the ‘Text Unlimited’ deal, offering free texts every month.

But the latest Freedom Packs are certain to lead to a new level of competition in the PAYG market. PAYG phones are an obvious choice for people in the current economic climate who do not want to get drawn into a long and costly contract, and by offering such a good deal Vodafone is certain to tempt more people towards getting a PAYG handset instead.

It has been revealed that the BBC has been trialling a new feature that will allow mobile phone users to watch live BBC TV programmes on their mobile handsets. The BBC has already seen its iPlayer become a huge success online, which offers viewers the chance to catch up with any programmes in the last week that they have missed. However, this is a completely different arena, and if successful could change the way we watch TV altogether.

The free mobile TV service is currently in its Beta phase, meaning that it is only available on a very select number of mobile handsets. It is also only available over Wi-Fi connections, and will not work over a 3G connection. It is unsure whether this will change in the future or whether this will remain the case.

The news only broke recently, but the BBC was quick to release a statement saying that the service has been trialled since last year, and that it is not some kind of covert operation. It is being offered through the iPlayer for mobiles service, and the BBC has said that it will be quite a while before this becomes a regular service.

All the main BBC channels are currently available on the free TV service for those phones that have access to it, but the BBC has pointed out that it is still a criminal offence to watch the programmes without a valid TV licence. How they are going to enforce this in the future, however, is anyone’s guess.