London - 60,000 handheld devices lost in taxis

'60,000' devices are left in cabs

London taxi passengers have left more than 60,000 hand-held devices in the back of black cabs during the past six months, a survey has found.

Some 55,843 mobile phones and 6,193 other devices, such as laptops, were forgotten, Credant Technologies found.

The data protection company, which surveyed 300 taxi drivers, warned users to password-protect equipment amid rising fears of identity theft.

Fraud experts said such devices could give criminals crucial data.

New devices - including mobiles, MP3 players and memory sticks - have the capacity to store tens of thousands of documents or pictures and millions of contacts and emails, making them a target for identity theft criminals and hackers.

A survey by credit reference agency Equifax in April suggested 16% of its customers put PIN numbers on their mobile devices while 24% recorded birthday dates.