iPad Stolen iPad

rstinson said:

It was not just left out, in my son's gym bag at school

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Yes, that's unfortunate. That means that some scumbag thief already knew that your son had an iPad and probably saw him place it inside the gym bag (or maybe knew that he kept one inside the gym bag). The thief then took the opportunity to swipe it while no one was looking.

It really comes down to.... you just can't trust anyone (in public places). Sad but true.

If you report it stolen to the Apple store, do they keep a list of "stolen" iDevices and then report them to the police if they're taken in for service?

Essenar said:

If you report it stolen to the Apple store, do they keep a list of "stolen" iDevices and then report them to the police if they're taken in for service?

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Nope.

I know this won't help now, but if you replace it, you might want to look into insurance from Worth Ave Group as they cover stolen iPads. It's the one peace of mind I have when taking my mini with me out in public.

Essenar said:

If you report it stolen to the Apple store, do they keep a list of "stolen" iDevices and then report them to the police if they're taken in for service?

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In general no. Nor do they ask for any kind of proof of ownership if someone brings in a device that is registered under another name in their system.

The only exception to this would require the police to contact them directly (and likely via the corporate office not at the store level) and asked for assistance to track down a ring of thieves or such.

rstinson said:

Am I right or wrong.

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Wrong

rstinson said:

I call Apple and ask can they tell if someone has open up a new account in ITunes with that serial number, but Apple said they would not work with me but will try and assist my local Law enforcement. I am just wondering can tell them if anyone has register the Ipad under a different name. My thought to have an Apple ID, you must register that serial number. Am I right or wrong.

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Apple won't get involved in these situations because they have no way of knowing who they're dealing with. Apple is not a law enforcement agency nor does it want to be one.

rstinson said:

He just got it for Christmas and I am mad as HELL, because he has been crying enough.

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Poor kid, I know what he is going they because my step daughter got her international galaxy s2 smartphone stolen last year as well. I paid $485 for the thing and for someone else to just come and take my hard earned money and brake my step so sad. Hers was stolen in middle school, so theft happens at every level of school.

Do Cellular Carriers Flag Stolen iPads?

From reading throughout this thread and from what I could find on Apple's website, they do not record or flag stolen devices. As someone said above, they are not a law enforcement agency nor do they want to be one. Seems very short sighted particularly when you hear about the frequent theft of Apple devices and that they makeup a significant portion of all thefts in large cities like NYC.

But my question is about the cellular carrier if your iPad was a 4G model. Do they flag the serial number of stolen devices so they can't be reused? In my case it's Verizon. I would call them, but reaching a real person regarding a pre-paid account is near impossible. When I canceled my reoccurring billing, the agent was sympathetic and refunded me my last month's service fee, which I thought was a nice gesture. But I never asked if it was now going to be flagged.

eagleglen said:

As someone said above, they are not a law enforcement agency nor do they want to be one. Seems very short sighted particularly when you hear about the frequent theft of Apple devices and that they makeup a significant portion of all thefts in large cities like NYC.

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Should GM then take responsibility for stolen cars? Tiffany's for stolen jewelry? It makes no sense for a manufacturer to devote resources to determining whether the person in possession of a device is the rightful re-purchaser or a thief.

This is why kids don't need expensive tech devices better buy him a pos android tablet for 59 bucks at your local big lots lol

poloponies said:

Should GM then take responsibility for stolen cars? Tiffany's for stolen jewelry? It makes no sense for a manufacturer to devote resources to determining whether the person in possession of a device is the rightful re-purchaser or a thief.

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Good point. But what about to receive warranty service? They keep such diligent files to track all other aspects of the device. Why not a flag that such-and-such serial numbered device not be serviced because the registered owner has requested it be denied.

For example, my iPad 4 was stolen without its recharger cable and I'm sure that has stumped the thief. There is now a trouble ticket for a defective charger that I can see when looking up the devices attached to my Apple ID. They will be able to get AppleCare as easily as I can, and that seems avoidable.

eagleglen said:

For example, my iPad 4 was stolen without its recharger cable and I'm sure that has stumped the thief.

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Only if he's a complete idiot. One can walk into a Walmart nowadays and buy another cable.

eagleglen said:

Good point. But what about to receive warranty service? They keep such diligent files to track all other aspects of the device. Why not a flag that such-and-such serial numbered device not be serviced because the registered owner has requested it be denied.

For example, my iPad 4 was stolen without its recharger cable and I'm sure that has stumped the thief. There is now a trouble ticket for a defective charger that I can see when looking up the devices attached to my Apple ID. They will be able to get AppleCare as easily as I can, and that seems avoidable.

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Again, you're asking a private entity to draw a legal conclusion with criminal implications. Even insurance companies don't simply take your word that an item was stolen, they require you to go through the necessary steps and file a police report because you then share the liability for false reporting. It simply puts an unnecessary legal burden on a private company.

Solomani said:

Treat all Apple devices like you are carrying around a fistful of cash. As soon as you put down that fistful of cash down somewhere (like a public bench), someone will steal it the moment you are not looking.

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This is my attitude as well. Treat it as if someone is about to steal it. Sad but true.

Sorry to hear this... some people, well, they suck.

poloponies said:

It does plenty, there are any number of situations where you may have misplaced a device and find it useful to locate it via a remote tone or GPS location. It was not specifically intended as an investigative tool where someone intentionally takes the device.

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Find My iPhone worked wonderfully when my partner left his phone on a bus. We used Find My iPhone to determine that the phone was somewhere in the bus depot. My partner went to the depot, and a security guard agreed to look for the phone. We used Find My iPhone to "beep" the phone, and the guard was able to locate the phone by the sound.

So it does work to locate lost devices, and it also sometimes works if a thief doesn't know what they are doing. But nowadays, more and more people know how Find My iPhone works, so they also know how to disable it.

poloponies said:

Should GM then take responsibility for stolen cars? Tiffany's for stolen jewelry? It makes no sense for a manufacturer to devote resources to determining whether the person in possession of a device is the rightful re-purchaser or a thief.

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Unfortunately this is true. There are many cases of people selling their ipad or iPhone and then reporting it stolen. It is not up to Apple to wade in to that swamp.

Luis2004 said:

This is why you should engrave it.

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On the front, with your full name and address.