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zafeer20

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 2, 2012
6
0
I got my iPhone 4 stolen i did not have any tracking app like Find my iPhone or MobileMe is my phone gone forever what can i do?
 
See if your homeowners insurance covers it. Else you're SOL.

Any reason you didnt install find my iPhone?

Homeowners? I doubt they would do anything cops are to lazy they just write up a report and just forget about it and i never knew about those apps.
 
To make a long story short...

unless you know the person responsible for stealing your iPhone, you're pretty much out of luck. My iPhone 3GS was stolen about a month after I bought it. I called Apple and AT&T and asked them to trace it, but they told me there was nothing they could do. AT&T and Apple both have the ability to see when a stolen device is in use, but they will not do anything about the situation. The only advice they will give you is to go to the police, and the only thing the police will do is ask whether or not you know who stole it.
 
Ring your network and the police, the least they'll do is blacklist the phone so it won't connect to any network in your country, then see if you have any insurance which covers it.
 
Ring your network and the police, the least they'll do is blacklist the phone so it won't connect to any network in your country, then see if you have any insurance which covers it.

That's not the case with AT&T, my friend. Verizon will give the iPhone a bad esn if it is reported stolen, but all AT&T will do is tell you you're out of luck and offer you a replacement device at full retail.
 
That's not the case with AT&T, my friend. Verizon will give the iPhone a bad esn if it is reported stolen, but all AT&T will do is tell you you're out of luck and offer you a replacement device at full retail.

Well that's ridiculous, do you mean to say that anyone can steal an AT&T iPhone then sell it on as fully working in the US? Why don't they bother blacklisting it? It's not exactly a hard thing for a network to do and it offers a deterrent to thieves. That's just pure laziness.

This is another one of those "I'm so glad I don't have to buy US phones" moments right here.
 
cops are to lazy they just write up a report and just forget about it

You're right. There really should be at least a dozen police out there doing random spot checks and body searches within a 50 mile radius of where you last saw your phone. They have the resources after all.
 
Well that's ridiculous, do you mean to say that anyone can steal an AT&T iPhone then sell it on as fully working in the US? Why don't they bother blacklisting it? It's not exactly a hard thing for a network to do and it offers a deterrent to thieves. That's just pure laziness.

This is another one of those "I'm so glad I don't have to buy US phones" moments right here.

Yes, AT&T could easily mark the unique mobile identification number as stolen in their network, but they won't. I had a long discussion with them about this when my 3GS was stolen. My iPhone was password protected, but that's easily worked around by performing a device restore. AT&T only cares about their profits.
 
Yes, AT&T could easily mark the unique mobile identification number as stolen in their network, but they won't. I had a long discussion with them about this when my 3GS was stolen. My iPhone was password protected, but that's easily worked around by performing a device restore. AT&T only cares about their profits.

That's nuts, I guess phone theft helps them sell replacements so they don't care. In the UK and most of Europe, all networks will block your phone's IMEI, and the blacklist is shared across every network within the country too. Of course, you can still use the phones abroad, but most phone thieves don't even know how the IMEI blacklist works and exporting phones abroad is a lot of effort, especially since sticking a phone on eBay and writing "I will only ship this phone abroad" basically shouts "THIS PHONE IS STOLEN!" (though you'd be surprised at how many times I've seen it while looking for faulty handsets)
 
That's nuts, I guess phone theft helps them sell replacements so they don't care.

Exactly, and also helps them gain an additional contract from whoever decides to activate you're stolen device on their network. Its pretty sad that they treat their well paying customers this way. Sounds like they could take some pointers from the carriers in Europe.
 
I'm sorry to hear that.

& that's ridiculous! You'd think that they'd actually help their customers instead of treating them in such a way!

I unfortunately had mine stolen on Friday 3rd, luckily my carrier (o2) blocked it so hopefully they've now only got a 32GB iPod touch, the thought of it makes me feel a bit sick. But if they can restore there must be a way of unlocking it somehow, like in some dodgy place. (even though it's been blocked?)

Thieves have no idea how it effects people, I'm a student and it took me a while to pay the extra for the phone on top of my contract and my contract doesn't end until october so I have to make do, its ridiculous!
 
I'm sorry to hear that.

& that's ridiculous! You'd think that they'd actually help their customers instead of treating them in such a way!

I unfortunately had mine stolen on Friday 3rd, luckily my carrier (o2) blocked it so hopefully they've now only got a 32GB iPod touch, the thought of it makes me feel a bit sick. But if they can restore there must be a way of unlocking it somehow, like in some dodgy place. (even though it's been blocked?)

Thieves have no idea how it effects people, I'm a student and it took me a while to pay the extra for the phone on top of my contract and my contract doesn't end until october so I have to make do, its ridiculous!

They can't make it work as a phone in the UK anymore because you can't change the IMEI on an iPhone. They could in theory sell it to someone overseas and it'd probably work there, however.

Get some insurance is my recommendation, it's fairly cheap and worth it for if these unfortunate things happen.
 
Get some insurance is my recommendation, it's fairly cheap and worth it for if these unfortunate things happen.

Next time I will be for sure, even though I doubt it'd happen again (I was visiting London and it got snatched) at the time £16 extra p/m insurance seemed massive but in hindsight it wasn't as bad as me loosing the phone forever. It actually really shook me up, I've never had anything or heard of anyone having things taken from them (in my area) but obviously with being away there was more of a chance. I have got a 3G to keep me going but I never realised the difference in ability/speed! (My friend very kindly lent me it until my contract runs out as it was a spare.)

edit: so now in theory it'll be blacklisted if they tried to sell it to say a second hand shop?
 
Next time I will be for sure, even though I doubt it'd happen again (I was visiting London and it got snatched) at the time £16 extra p/m insurance seemed massive but in hindsight it wasn't as bad as me loosing the phone forever. It actually really shook me up, I've never had anything or heard of anyone having things taken from them (in my area) but obviously with being away there was more of a chance. I have got a 3G to keep me going but I never realised the difference in ability/speed! (My friend very kindly lent me it until my contract runs out as it was a spare.)

edit: so now in theory it'll be blacklisted if they tried to sell it to say a second hand shop?

In London these things are common sadly :(

A second hand shop is unlikely to buy it from them, but what often happens is they go on eBay and sell it to an international buyer or a dodgy phone repairer who can use the phone for parts. A bulk of "faulty" phones with "signal problems" on eBay are indeed stolen.
 
It's such a shame! I was going to buy a new (out-right) 4s but thought I'm going to get myself an iPad3 when they come out and buy one when my upgrade is due. I need to do a bit of research on iPad insurance because the 'store' (comet/currys) insurance doesn't seem to cover theft on fault and I need it all covering now unfortunately because I can't let this happen again, it's wound me up so much.
 
It's such a shame! I was going to buy a new (out-right) 4s but thought I'm going to get myself an iPad3 when they come out and buy one when my upgrade is due. I need to do a bit of research on iPad insurance because the 'store' (comet/currys) insurance doesn't seem to cover theft on fault and I need it all covering now unfortunately because I can't let this happen again, it's wound me up so much.

Look around for companies which specialise in "gadget insurance", they'll often give you a better deal than Curry's and so on. Protect My Bubble is one of the best known ones, but I've heard mixed things about how easy it is to actually claim from them.
 
Look around for companies which specialise in "gadget insurance", they'll often give you a better deal than Curry's and so on. Protect My Bubble is one of the best known ones, but I've heard mixed things about how easy it is to actually claim from them.

I'm wondering if I can buy one out right from o2 and have them put insurance on top of the monthly data charge.

edit: I'll find something because I know I 100% want it insured against theft/loss.
 
I think networks only provide insurance to contract customers sadly.

BTW, if you want, I can PM you with a giffgaff link that will give you a free SIM with a way better pay as you go deal than O2 and £5 free credit, but it still runs on their network so you get the same coverage ;)
 
This is ridiculous. Why the hell are AT&T allowed to get away with not protecting their customers?

It makes me glad that I live in the UK and not the US.

In the UK carriers can permanently block the IMEI so it isn't useable on any UK network. Maybe worldwide networks should be lobbied to share an international blacklist database and that it is COMPULSORY for them to add IMEIs of stolen phones to it.

Furthermore Apple should be forced to incorporate a functionality that physically renders the device unusable, by shorting it out or something that can be activated by the networks when it is reported stolen.

I once had an iPod touch stolen when I was mugged. The b*stards even stamped on my face to get it from me and there was nothing I could do, the police never found them and now they have my iPod that I ******** worked to buy!!!!!
 
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