Stolen iPhone Advice...

[mrcourt123]

My iPhone was stolen several days ago. I have suspended my account with AT&T until I can buy a new phone this weekend and I have filed a police report. I have also reported the phone stolen with AT&T and Apple Care. I know my phone is lost and gone forever, I'm certainly not expecting to have it recovered, but I'm looking for some advice....

First, is there anything I can do to ensure that the person who stole it will not be able to use the iPhone? Other than finding the stolen phone, which I know isn't going to happen, this would give me at least a little piece of mind knowing the thief has a useless phone.

Second, when an iPhone is no longer in service (since I have suspended the account and reported the phone stolen) what features of the phone can be accessed?

Third, is there anyplace else I should report the stolen phone or anything in particular I should try and get AT&T to do for me to make the phone as inaccessible as possible to the thief?

Fourth, is there any type of insurance anybody knows of that may cover me in the future for something like this? I am pretty sure AT&T doesn't offer their standard mobile phone insurance on the iPhone.

Thanks in advance to responses to any of my 4 questions!

~Matt

[brn2ski00]

If it had a passcode lock on it, they won't be able to get in.

[SFStateStudent]

Originally Posted by brn2ski00

If it had a passcode lock on it, they won't be able to get in.

they can get in without the password/code, but I won't divulge that procedure. Sorry to hear about your loss.

[rjohnstone]

You can try and have AT&T black list the IMEI, but there are ways around that. (IMEI changer comes to mind)
Some have had difficulty in getting them to do it.

As for it being non-functional... not gonna happen.
All the thief has to do is wipe it, jailbreak/unlock it and replace the SIM and viola, they have a functioning iPhone.
Passcode lock is a joke. Any data you had on it is theirs now.

Sorry to break it too you, but the phone can always be made fully functional.
Even the new remote wipe feature in 2.0 only wipes personal data, the phone itself is still fully functional.

[vanmacguy]

Originally Posted by mrcourt123

<SNIP>

Fourth, is there any type of insurance anybody knows of that may cover me in the future for something like this? I am pretty sure AT&T doesn't offer their standard mobile phone insurance on the iPhone.

</SNIP>

I know when I have had things stolen, my house insurance covers it. Problem is that if you're like most (me included), your deductible is higher that the replacement cost.

When my MBP was stolen out of my car a year ago, my insurance covered theft from my car up to 2500, that coupled with my 500 deductible, gave me a nice discount off my new MBP.

I could lower my deductible, but that of course raises my premium, which is a trade-off that I'm not prepared to make.

So, depending on your insurance, it might be worth your while. You are covered, but it might just not be worth it.

Cheers, and good luck.

[mrcourt123]

The passcode lock was annoying me so I took it off the morning my phone was stolen. Doesn't that figure!

I have thought about my renters insurance, but like you said the deductible doesn't make it worth it.

I guess I am just out of luck with it's functionality. It's hard to justify spending another $400 on a phone when this one was stolen, but what are ya gonna do? Just be more careful the next time I guess...

[rjohnstone]

Originally Posted by mrcourt123

I guess I am just out of luck with it's functionality. It's hard to justify spending another $400 on a phone when this one was stolen, but what are ya gonna do? Just be more careful the next time I guess...

See if you can get one of the $249 refurbs from AT&T.

[mrcourt123]

I thought about getting one of the cheap refurbs. Can you get Apple Care on those?

[diehardmacfan]

Originally Posted by mrcourt123

I thought about getting one of the cheap refurbs. Can you get Apple Care on those?

i bought 1 but i'm not sure you can get apple care...i would think that you could. the come with the standard 1 year warranty though

[calvy]

Originally Posted by diehardmacfan

i bought 1 but i'm not sure you can get apple care...i would think that you could. the come with the standard 1 year warranty though

You can get apple care with most mac refurbs. Not sure why this would be different.

[nparmelee]

Check with the credit card company you bought the phone with. Depending on how long ago the purchase was and which credit card company, they may have some type of protection for you.

[mrcourt123]

Originally Posted by nparmelee

Check with the credit card company you bought the phone with. Depending on how long ago the purchase was and which credit card company, they may have some type of protection for you.

I've never heard of anything like that, but I'll look into it. Thanks!

[Draddy]

how was it stolen?

[martyrk]

Mine was stolen too, does ATT keep track of IMEI to SIM cards?

[gokum4]

its a proven fact, most ipod, itouch, iphone thefts that occur are from your friends. these are the ppl that you feel very comfortable around and will let your guard down.

[macworksgreat]

Originally Posted by gokum4

its a proven fact, most ipod, itouch, iphone thefts that occur are from your friends. these are the ppl that you feel very comfortable around and will let your guard down.

Who are "your" friends? If that is true than I don't have to worry - I don't have any friends

[lavinci]

I'd suggest letting it go and buy another phone.

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Send some bait messages.

Ex: "Hey, I left the money in an envelope taped under a bench on the corner of 1st & 1ave. Get it now before someone finds it. Looking forward to doing business again."

Just wait until you see someone on there knees looking under that same bench.

[XciteMe]

Originally Posted by LIVEFRMNYC

Send some bait messages.

Ex: "Hey, I left the money in an envelope taped under a bench on the corner of 1st & 1ave. Get it now before someone finds it. Looking forward to doing business again."

Just wait until you see someone on there knees looking under that same bench.

Obviously whoever stole it popped the AT&T SIM out and is using their own. Is the owner supposed to randomly guess the thief's number??

[greygray]

Originally Posted by SFStateStudent

they can get in without the password/code, but I won't divulge that procedure. Sorry to hear about your loss.

How about a PM?

Anyway sad to hear your loss OP. People resort to unscruptulous means to steal something they want and this is what happens. Get a refurb 8GB or 16GB 3G. Those are quite cheap.

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Originally Posted by XciteMe

Obviously whoever stole it popped the AT&T SIM out and is using their own. Is the owner supposed to randomly guess the thief's number??

Obviously it doesn't hurt to try ...

Obviously not everyone is tech savy, especially since you can't just pop in a sim unless it's unlocked ....

Obviously I wasn't serious ....

[jav6454]

Originally Posted by XciteMe

Obviously whoever stole it popped the AT&T SIM out and is using their own. Is the owner supposed to randomly guess the thief's number??

Obviously, you don't know how a passcode or MobileMe work.

[killerrobot]

Tough break. Hopefully they tossed your sim card and replaced it with their own without checking it for data.

The only insurance policy that might cover it is a Personal Article policy. Many insurance companies won't cover the iPhone or iPods though because of the high theft risk. You have to check with yours.

[reoreilly]

OP, there's always the chance that the person who stole your phone is a total numbskull and won't be able to figure out how to get the thing working. I know that if they are resourceful in any way they will be able to - but if the person is that resourceful, perhaps they would have earned their own iphone and not stolen yours in the first place. Who knows whether they'll get it working or not, but I hope the chance that they won't get it working gives you a little peace of mind. All the best, and good luck with getting a new phone.

[XciteMe]

Originally Posted by jav6454

Obviously, you don't know how a passcode or MobileMe work.

Obviously I was referring to the suggestion that the owner TEXT his own phone which is now in the hands of a complete stranger with their own SIM card/number in the iPhone... Can Mobile Me somehow retrieve that number???