Stolen iPhone, What to Do Next?

GordonR on 27/08/2017 - 19:14

My daughter had her iPhone SE stolen from her school bag on Friday. (She saved up for 18 months to buy it, used it heavily and loved it.) Same thing happened to two other kids, so almost certainly another school kid who could rifle through the bags without anyone really paying much attention.

It had Find My IPhone enabled and a 6-digit passcode, but the moment she realised it was gone, she called it and it was already turned off and since then Find My IPhone has reported it as offline since then. I've had the SIM blocked, and have set up both Notify Me and Lost Mode so that if it is connected to the internet in the usual way, I will be notified. And anyone connecting it up to the internet will get the message I wrote offering a no questions asked reward for its return.

I've scoured Gumtree, eBay and Cash Converters for new listings, but no dice.

The next move is to have the IMEI blocked and claim on insurance (and then it should be of no further use as a phone, though obviously it might be of use for parts etc.) but this is irrevocable and I'd really rather get it back.

So my question is whether I've covered all the bases? What would a 14-year old schoolgirl (our best guess based on where and when it was taken) do after stealing a locked iPhone? Obviously she was smart enough to immediately turn it off, but what next?

Mobile

Comments

  • Ocker on 27/08/2017 - 19:22
    +6

    "Stolen iPhone, What to Do Next?"
    1. Change schools as it seems they are a rough lot at the present school?
    2. Check your insurance policy to see if the phone is covered.
    3. Either (a) buy your daughter a $30 el-cheapo phone while still at school or (b) buy her another SE and hot-glue a lanyard to it so she can wear it around her neck.
    p.s. My son had his iPhone knocked off from his locker at one of Melbourne's "elite" Eastern suburbs private schools!

    • GordonR on 27/08/2017 - 19:29
      +2

      Insurance should be ok (find out tomorrow), it was stolen during sport which is the only time she is separated from it, as they all change and pile the bags in a corner of the gym, but for some activities they are sort of at the other end of the gym.

    • fruit on 27/08/2017 - 19:43
      -2
      1. Check your insurance policy to see if the phone is covered.

      Did you read the post?

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 20:38
      +3

      How do you steal something from a locked locker?
      Was the locker forcibly broken into?

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:21
      +1

      Haha love Option 3. Who's going to steal a potato phone

  • xuqi on 27/08/2017 - 19:26
    +1

    Who knows what the thief will do with it. The spare parts are quite useful for anyone handy with phone repairs. Swap out the motherboard from a physically damaged phone, and you've got yourself a perfectly functional phone.

    Block IMEI, report as stolen and move on. Nothing more you can do.

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:23
      +1

      Easily done in China and cheaply

  • Kangal on 27/08/2017 - 19:27
    +6

    The simple answer would be to steal another one.

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:23
      +1

      Genius!!

  • dylanando on 27/08/2017 - 19:41
    +5

    Arent these useless without the icloud password?
    They've basically got a paperweight now

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:24

      Not really, change the motherboard and you've got a working phone

      • dylanando on 27/08/2017 - 21:25

        Thats abit extreme

        • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:26

          That might be extreme but it can be easily done

        • Kangal on 28/08/2017 - 03:00
          +2

          @BrodenIt:
          There's a market for stolen genuine iPhones, where the IMEI gets spoofed and storage capacity upgraded on the cheap.
          Even the housing can be replaced if theres visible dints and scratches on the metal or glass.

          Phones are then repackaged into fake but convincing Apple boxes, shrink wrapped, and sold as Brand New.
          Its a pretty lucrative market.

    • iamw0man on 28/08/2017 - 08:19
      +1

      Even IMEI blocked phones will sell for several hundred on eBay.

      • chrisd262 on 28/08/2017 - 09:30

        What do buyers do with them?

        • iamw0man on 29/08/2017 - 08:42

          Well I assume some can be bothered to replace parts to get them working again. Others might use them for all the non-phone functions.

        • anabol on 07/09/2017 - 08:42

          even if the imei is blocked in Australia, there is still a bunch of other countries in the world)

  • PVA on 27/08/2017 - 19:49

    block the imei immediately before they sell it to some sucker (prob already sold though)

  • Randxyz123 on 27/08/2017 - 20:19
    +2

    Check local buy/swap/sell FB pages

    Have you spoken to the school about this? If it was more than one then they should step in…

    Maybe they can make an announcement in assembly.

    Something like… "If it was you Drop the phone at the office, no questions asked"

    For my old high school there were a few unofficial buy/sell pages for selling text books for example. The thief might make simple mistakes like put it up on that so tell your daughter to join those pages and keep an eye out. If anything stands out, screenshot it and take it to the head of her year.

    Are there no lockers for sports stuff?

    • GordonR on 27/08/2017 - 21:03

      Yes, she gathered up the other girls (who lost phones) and they all went together to notify the teachers. They will announce on the school online system.

      They have lockers but not specifically for sport, and the lockers are somewhat far from the gym, so many of the kids don't consistently go out of their way to lock up their phones every single week. (She will be doing this from now on though!)

      I'm actually intrigued as to what the thief might be doing with the phone - in principle it has very little value (given that the passcode and Apple ID do not seem to be compromised) except to someone who really knows where to sell it for parts etc. Or to someone who can offload it to some other sucker. Neither of these seem super likely for a youngish schoolgirl.

      Once the IMEI is blocked, it's all over and it is untraceable, so I am sort of reluctant to jump at that immediately. (but on Monday when I can contact the insurance guys, I'll have to do it because they won't pay out on a phone unless its bricked).

      • Randxyz123 on 27/08/2017 - 22:10
        +1

        I'm actually intrigued as to what the thief might be doing with the phone - in principle it has very little value (given that the passcode and Apple ID do not seem to be compromised) except to someone who really knows where to sell it for parts etc. Or to someone who can offload it to some other sucker. Neither of these seem super likely for a youngish schoolgirl.

        I think you are under estimating how smart kids are these days and what they'll do. 14 isn't that young. It's when a lot of changes happen some kids start to do stupid shit.

        I'd give it a week before putting through an insurance claim. The kid who stole it might regret it. I'd be seriously pushing the school to make sure they tell the students to lock up their valuables and to strongly suggest whoever did it to come forward. If she doesn't want to leave her bag in her main locker, perhaps a small suitcase lock for her sports bag could be the solution…?

  • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 20:42
    +6

    There is nothing you can do.

    This is life.

    Teach your child a lesson. That people can steal, can break the law, can do pretty much anything in our society with little to no consequence.

  • nxllson on 27/08/2017 - 21:19

    Go through the school's lost property collection, and visit your local police station and file a report. They could help you if the phone is turned in, the iPhone is also worthless if the young thief tries to restore it, he/she will need the iCloud password to activate the phone after its restore. The phone is practically parts only at this part without its original owner.

  • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 21:30
    -5

    (She saved up for 18 months to buy it, used it heavily and loved it.) That's why bananas are better. Tell her to use her money wisely next time…

    • bobbified on 27/08/2017 - 22:00
      +1

      Tell her to use her money wisely next time…

      Bit harsh isn't it? What's your idea of a wise purchase at that age? An iphone would be the big ticket item for a 14 year old school student. Good that she's learnt to save for what she wants and was able to maintain it for 18 months.

      Do you really expect a 14 year old to be saving for a house? haha

      • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2017 - 22:12
        +1

        What's your idea of a wise purchase at that age?
        Eneloops

        An iphone would be the big ticket item for a 14 year old school student. Good that she's learnt to save for what she wants and was able to maintain it for 18 months.
        Still, there are many better alternatives rather than getting an Iphone SE but for a high school student wouldn't a SE be overkill in an Ozbargainers perspective

        Do you really expect a 14 year old to be saving for a house? haha
        Yes, welcome to Ozbargain jk

        • Savas on 29/08/2017 - 17:56

          Do you have a Windows 10 phone? have you by any chance had issues connecting to public wifi hotspots?

  • currentfad on 27/08/2017 - 22:30
    +12

    I remember when I was in year 1 I had to rush off to something so I put my tamagotchi on top of my bag instead of inside. When I came back it was gone. I'm still pissed to this day.

    • GaryQ on 28/08/2017 - 09:24

      It's ok - your tamagotchi was taken to a farm in the country to play with all the others

    • bitesized on 28/08/2017 - 09:59
      +2

      I guess he… tamagotcha

  • Findo on 28/08/2017 - 02:23

    Students from a certain Sydney selective high school in the hills area will be able to confirm the authenticity of the following story:
    A while ago, in 2008 a year 7 student or 2009 a year 8 student (I forgot which one) had his phone stolen and reported it to the school. The alleged thief was only caught after the victim claimed the disputed phone in question was his because there were biscuit crumbs in the battery compartment. The victim supplied evidence that on the day he had his phone stolen, he had chocolate biscuits in his pocket, hence the crumbs in the battery compartment.
    The story was told to me with great gusto by my former deputy principal on a few occasions.

    Does your daughter keep food in her pockets? Is there anything that has dirtied the phone that can identify the device as hers? If yes, it's a matter of looking out for similar iphone SEs her fellow students have.

    • garetz on 28/08/2017 - 02:50

      How about the IMEI which is unique for each phone.

      • Findo on 28/08/2017 - 03:07

        I don't know how many people even have it written down or know how to find it. Certainly not a kid.

        • Richardc on 28/08/2017 - 04:14

          if she still had the package

        • hogwarts on 28/08/2017 - 07:47

          My <14 year old son knows how to do this. So yes, a kid could do it.

    • GordonR on 28/08/2017 - 08:08

      Nice story…

      We won't have a food trail, but I do have the IMEI so if we get close enough to a suspect phone we can identify it.

      But the steps we've already taken mean that the phone won't be immediately useful to the thief so they are not likely to be wandering around with it.

    • kiitos on 28/08/2017 - 12:52

      The biscuit crumb story sounds a bit fishy.

      • Findo on 28/08/2017 - 13:39

        It does sound a tad unbelievable, doesn't it? It sure was quick thinking on the part of the victim though.

  • 0 jingle 0 on 28/08/2017 - 06:24

    It won't connect to the internet when it's turned on because the SIM card is blocked. So it may have been turned on since.

    • GordonR on 28/08/2017 - 08:10

      Yes, this is a catch 22 situation.

      They would have to break the passcode without wiping the phone and then connect by wifi or a new SIM, so probably blocking the SIM already made it very unlikely to track it down.

  • [Deactivated] on 28/08/2017 - 07:33
    +2

    Nobody ever had a mobile phone stolen when I was at school.

    • bobbified on 28/08/2017 - 09:04
      +1

      No-one wanted to steal two cups and a string!

      You old f a r t ! (I really shouldn't be talking! haha)

      Those days were good - people actually made an effort to come meet at the pre-arranged time.

      • [Deactivated] on 29/08/2017 - 10:10
        +1

        And we had the ability to observe and understand when someone was making a joke without someone having to put LOL at the end!

  • voiletmay on 28/08/2017 - 07:39

    Some kids are kleptomaniacs, we had an ipad stolen once (little girl climbed through my sons bedroom window). We knew who it was, the police knew, but since she was a child there was little they could do. This same girl would steal musical instruments from the music room at school and lots of other things form the school too. Always stealing things from the local shops, from other kids. The policeman told me that her whole family was like that.

    No idea what she did with all the stuff she stole, she just stole them because that is what she did.

    Really sucks for your daughter. You'll all (your family) keep getting angry about it for years afterwards.

    • Findo on 28/08/2017 - 09:04
      +1

      What absolute scum. What happened to the girl later on? Did DOCS give the family a visit?

      • voiletmay on 28/08/2017 - 16:38

        Absolutely nothing at all. Haven't seen her for a few years, so not sure if they moved away or what.

  • frostman on 28/08/2017 - 08:36

    I've had the SIM blocked, and have set up both Notify Me and Lost Mode so that if it is connected to the internet in the usual way, I will be notified.

    It's probably already in China in some teenage girl's hands taking selfies with it.

  • chrisd262 on 28/08/2017 - 09:28

    There appears to be many IMEI and iCloud locked iphones sold on Ebay - what do buyers do with them?

    • pikapika on 28/08/2017 - 09:39

      parts..

    • bobbified on 28/08/2017 - 11:17

      It costs $US$35 to change out the motherboard overseas.
      A second hand iphone sells for significantly more over there than over here.
      A couple of hundred dollars between old and new doesn't sound like much for us over here (and most people wouldn't mind spending the extra to get new), that couple of hundred dollars difference could be a month's work to someone over there.

    • anabol on 07/09/2017 - 08:46

      imei block only works for 1 country)

  • ozbarhui on 28/08/2017 - 22:54
    +2

    Hello OP, my phone was stolen from me several years ago. I did everything that you did, and I also reported it to the police.

    I did, in fact, receive a phone call. Turned out the thief had taken it to a phone (repair?) shop - either to sell it or to pretend it was broken. When the repairman switched it on, my Lost Mode message popped up. Unfortunately, he started to panic after talking to me and realising that it was a stolen phone. He said if I wanted my phone back, I had to get to his shop NOW because the thief had gone temporarily. Except he didn't give me his specific location beyond his suburb, he kept saying he didn't want any trouble, and the thief had returned so he hung up.

    Seeing as I had the landline number of the caller, I gave it to the police. The police went to check it out and the place was basically kind of a mobile phone repair stand with no CCTV around it. I don't recall the police getting any useful information out of the repairman either. SURPRISINGLY, the "Find My iPhone" app never detected where my iPhone was located when it was switched on. I never figured out why that was. I've since considered it a lost cause, and remotely wiped the phone.

    I wish phones couldn't be turned off without keying in the passcode first!

    Good luck OP. It sucks, but I feel it is unlikely you will see the phone again, and so let it be a lesson (as it was for me).

    • DoctorCalculon on 29/08/2017 - 12:58
      +1

      I wish phones couldn't be turned off without keying in the passcode first!

      Great idea! This will prevent opportunistic thieves from quickly switching the phone off to prevent tracking by the owner.
      Smart thieves will get around it by placing the device in a Faraday Cage (to block all incoming and outgoing signals), and wait for the battery to drain and for the phone to switch off eventually.

      • anabol on 07/09/2017 - 08:54

        "Great idea! This will prevent opportunistic thieves from quickly switching the phone off to prevent tracking by the owner."
        should the airplane mode be protected by the passcode as well?

        • DoctorCalculon on 07/09/2017 - 09:44
          +1

          "should the airplane mode be protected by the passcode as well?"

          If you are extremely security minded, you can disable access to the control panel on the lock screen.
          Security vs Convenience!

  • GordonR on 31/08/2017 - 15:09

    So an iPhone has appeared on Gumtree of the right type, colour and capacity.

    It is advertised as unlocked, but comes with no accessories or box.

    There is a photo of the phone (not a stock photo) but the IMEI has been blurred to invisibility. This blurring is clearly deliberate because the adjacent characters (like the four letters that make up the word IMEI are clearly visible on zooming).

    So now what?

    • brisdaz on 08/10/2021 - 20:55
      +1

      Was this resolved?

  • 0 jingle 0 on 07/09/2017 - 08:49

    Send a enquiry asking for the IMEI. It's a legitimate question buying a mobile phone as it is always advisable to check the IMEI when buying a second hand phone so you can be sure it's not locked to an Apple ID.

    • anabol on 07/09/2017 - 08:55

      how do you check the imei-apple ID connection?

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