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"Find My iPhone" epic fail - how to steal an iPhone

C

CaptSaltyJack

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 28, 2007
351
1
So here's how savvy thieves can steal your phone and you'll never know where it is:

1) You lose your phone.
2) Savvy thief finds it, goes into Mail settings into your MobileMe account, and just turns "Find My iPhone" off.

That's right, there's no passcode verification, no prompting for your MobileMe password, nothing! Really smart, Apple.
 
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CaptSaltyJack said:
So here's how savvy thieves can steal your phone and you'll never know where it is:

1) You lose your phone.
2) Savvy thief finds it, goes into Mail settings into your MobileMe account, and just turns "Find My iPhone" off.

That's right, there's no passcode verification, no prompting for your MobileMe password, nothing! Really smart, Apple.
Click to expand...

they cant do this if you have a passcode on your phone in the first place
 
That is bad... Apple should immediately go back to the old way of finding a stolen iPhone until they can patch a fix!
 
Perhaps Apple thought you would be smart enough to pass code lock your phone on the lock screen? :D
 
True, but what if we don't want to use the pass code feature, which is inherently flawed anyway? If you set it to ask for the pass code after 4 hrs of no use, and you lose it in a cab, someone can be using your phone within 30 minutes. If you set it to ask for the pass code after 15 minutes of no use, then it's just annoying.

I turned off the pass code feature in the hopes that Find My iPhone would take care of the "what if" scenario of me losing my phone. Guess it's not good enough.

Apple: clue in. Please prompt for the MobileMe account password when disabling Find My iPhone.
 
This has been know for awhile.

They really need to passcode lock anything that has to do with 'Find My iPhone'.
 
ttech10 said:
This has been know for awhile.

They really need to passcode lock anything that has to do with 'Find My iPhone'.
Click to expand...

Yes, I'd be happy with this: I set pass code lock for 4 hours. That way it's at least ON, and if someone tries to turn off "Find My iPhone," it prompts for the pass code.

I really hope to see this in the next update. It seems like a no-brainer.
 
CaptSaltyJack said:
True, but what if we don't want to use the pass code feature, which is inherently flawed anyway? If you set it to ask for the pass code after 4 hrs of no use, and you lose it in a cab, someone can be using your phone within 30 minutes. If you set it to ask for the pass code after 15 minutes of no use, then it's just annoying.

I turned off the pass code feature in the hopes that Find My iPhone would take care of the "what if" scenario of me losing my phone. Guess it's not good enough.

Apple: clue in. Please prompt for the MobileMe account password when disabling Find My iPhone.
Click to expand...

id be more worried that people will be accessing my emails, im, facebook, and other personal information on my phone...
it takes no more than a second to enter your passcode.
i dont think its a big a deal as youre making out. everybody should have a passcode on their iphone.
but i agree they should still require the passcode for this, but its not a big deal.
 
MaxxTraxx said:
Inserting pass code every 5 minutes to look at a text message is not fun.
Click to expand...

I don't mind taking 1-2 seconds to enter a passcode if it ensures my information is safe. Also having "wipe after 10 failed tries" helps too. But just don't let your friends mess with your phone. >_>
 
Another minor flaw. They say that if you send a message via FMI (Find My iPhone) and use the alert sound, it will play even if the ringer is off. True, but if the volume is cranked way down, the alert sound is super quiet. Duh...hah. Here I expected it to blare at full strength no matter what!
 
Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8320/4.5.0.81 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

Still good for losing your iphone. And for the many theives who won't know about the feature much less how to turn it off.
 
Shouldn't there just be a passcode to enable and disable the find my iphone setting? That seems like the logical solution.
 
stupidm4n said:
MobileMe helps you find your LOST iPhone

Not Stolen
Click to expand...

Hmm... partially true maybe. If it's only for LOST phones, why have the remote wipe feature then?? There's some paranoia there about someone using your phone, obviously. I'd say it's for lost or stolen phones.
 
QCassidy352 said:
Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8320/4.5.0.81 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

Still good for losing your iphone. And for the many theives who won't know about the feature much less how to turn it off.
Click to expand...

You're probably right. iPhone savvy people are going to be people who own one already. :)
 
Yeah. It's true. You can go right in and turn it off without being prompted for anything. This has to be an oversight on Apple's part. Hopefully it's something that they will address in a future update.

I agree. Everyone should use the passcode feature. It's such a pain though :)
 
MaxxTraxx said:
Inserting pass code every 5 minutes to look at a text message is not fun.
Click to expand...
I have mine set to require a pass code after 1 hour. I figure that's a reasonable compromise between security and convenience.

Plus, mine is set to erase contents after 10 unsuccessful pass code tries.

Between this and the Find My Phone - Remote Erase option, its about as reasonable as it gets for security.

Besides, if my phone is out of my immediate possession for more than an hour anyway I'd probably Remote Erase it to be on the safe side. If I subsequently find it, I can just restore from a backup. And all my email/calendar/contacts are "on the cloud" anyway, so they'll be intact regardless.
 
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