In their Editors' Choice award-winning Android security suite Bitdefender Mobile Security and Antivirus, Bitdefender offers top-notch malware protection and excellent anti-theft support. But what if you don't think you need malware protection in the first place? Then let me introduce you to Bitdefender Anti-Theft (free, $3.95/year) which has all of the features that will keep your Android safe from thieves for a third the cost of the full-blown security suite.

Setting Up
In every report I've seen from independent testing labs, malware detection rates for most Android security apps hover between 96 and 100 percent. That's fantastic for users, but it means that what differentiates most security apps is the other features they include. Anti-theft is the most important, and successful apps do well in this category by combining ease of use and strong features.

Setup with Bitdefender Anti-Theft was quick and painless, and included the option to create an account with Bitdefender using your Google account—a feature I really appreciate. Like other anti-theft apps, Bitdefender requires that you set up your device before it's stolen. If that's already happened, look to Android Device Manager or Plan B if you're using an older droid.

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During set up, Bitdefender will suggest that you enter the phone number of a trusted individual for sending SMS commands and receiving alerts about your device. I really like that Bitdefender encourages users to take advantage of this powerful feature, as it might otherwise be overlooked.

Anti-Theft Tools
Most of your interaction with Bitdefender will be done through a web portal, which was a bit cluttered for my taste. I was also annoyed that I couldn't rename my registered devices, which will surely confuse some users—especially parents with multiple, identical phones named SAMSUNG-SGH-1747.

From the site you can remotely trigger a number of options. Location will trigger automatically, presenting your device's current location on a large Google Maps map. The location was as accurate as can be expected, though unlike Android Device Manager Anti-Theft won't display an approximate area for devices with low accuracy results, like my Nexus 7 SEE IT tablet that doesn't have a cellular radio.

Your other options are remotely triggering an alarm, sending a message, locking your device, or wiping your device's memory. Messages appear swiftly on your device, and give you the option to activate an alarm along with your message. The alarm sounds is harsh like an angry clock radio and registered a boisterous 98 decibels.

I had some trouble remotely locking my devices, and discovered that the anti-theft app Prey was the culprit. Once I revoked Prey's Device Administrator privileges, the lock command went through just fine. This is why you should always test drive your security apps before actually need them.

I was happy to see that the lock command made use of the default Android lockscreen. I was unable to access the homepage, the task manager, or the notification tray on my Nexus 7 with Anti-Theft, unlike some other security apps.

Last, but certainly not least, is remote wipe, which runs a factory reset and erases everything on your device. This is a nuclear option, but can keep thieves from getting at your private information. Unfortunately, Anti-Theft does not allow you to remotely trigger your device's front-facing camera, unlike Kaspersky Mobile Security.

If your device uses a cellular connection, Anti-Theft will send an alert SMS to the person you nominated during set up whenever the SIM card is changed. This is a really important feature, not only because it might be the first sign you get that your phone is stolen, but also because of how Anti-Theft's SMS commands work.