Stolen IPOD

Posted:
in iPod + iTunes + AppleTV edited January 2014
My Ipod was stolen 1 month back and I would like to tell Apple so they can flag it as stolen. Apparantly the norm is for them to do...NOTHING.... in cases such as these.



It would be so easy to build code into itunes that would allow the ipods connected to it to be tracked. A log of serial number, time, date and IP address should be sent to apple automatically and IF one of those ipods is flagged as stolen or lost then an email sent off to the owner who registered it.



Send an email to the person who cares most about getting it back. They would take this information to the police and follow it up.



It all makes complete sence to me. Why hasnt Apple implemented this as yet?? It should be simple and automated all via the Apple website. It shouldnt be costly to implement something like this.



Please help me to understand why things are not done in this way.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 34
    asaphasaph Posts: 176member
    ... maybe because that is a horrible invasion of privacy issue?
  • Reply 2 of 34
    pbg3pbg3 Posts: 211member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by wezy904

    My Ipod was stolen 1 month back and I would like to tell Apple so they can flag it as stolen. Apparantly the norm is for them to do...NOTHING.... in cases such as these.



    It would be so easy to build code into itunes that would allow the ipods connected to it to be tracked. A log of serial number, time, date and IP address should be sent to apple automatically and IF one of those ipods is flagged as stolen or lost then an email sent off to the owner who registered it.



    Send an email to the person who cares most about getting it back. They would take this information to the police and follow it up.



    It all makes complete sence to me. Why hasnt Apple implemented this as yet?? It should be simple and automated all via the Apple website. It shouldnt be costly to implement something like this.



    Please help me to understand why things are not done in this way.






    Are you serious. That is absolutely ridiculous.
  • Reply 3 of 34
    wezy904wezy904 Posts: 4member
    As far as I am concerned if Apple were to only take



    1)A log of serial number

    2)time & date

    3)IP address



    and NOTHING MORE, I would say yes to this immediately. There has to be balance struck in a case such as this and this option is the lesser of two evils. You have to give a little to get a little and what you get back far exceeds what you give.
  • Reply 4 of 34
    max_naylormax_naylor Posts: 194member
    You just sound pissed off because your iPod was stolen. When push comes to shove, can you seriously expect Apple or any other company to implement something like this? Would you expect your mobile phone network to track your phone if it was stolen? I wouldn't. And why would you need IP address?



    More importantly, why should Apple care that someone stole your iPod? It's not their responsibility. Plus, they make more money if you have to go out and buy a new one. Jeez.
  • Reply 5 of 34
    agnuke1707agnuke1707 Posts: 487member
    You could add it to your insurance, but depending on your deductable and what your insurer says its worth, you could end up with nothing that route. I had an iPod stolen too ... it just happened to b in my truck at the time my truck was stolen. And my CD's, my stereo, tools, etc ... my homeownrs insurance covered the inside of the vehicle and I was able to get enough back to pay for a new iPod.



    The moral of my story ... have someone steal your car and claim the iPod was in there along with all of your tools and stuff. I'd rather you committ insurance fraud than Apple log my iPod.



    Sorry dude, but looks like you just live and learn...
  • Reply 6 of 34
    max_naylormax_naylor Posts: 194member
    In addition to my earlier rant, please don't tell me you opened an account to moan about your 'Pod. Please.
  • Reply 7 of 34
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    Hold on max, wezy904 clearly spent some time constructing this argument. It is not just your typical bitch&moan post, but a serious Q&A topic. Wether you agree with this solution or not is the very topic up for discussion.



    Personally, I think there should be more practical additions to iTunes such as this (and re-downloading lost/stolen purchased music. I mean, come on!), but I also fight strongly for privacy. If Apple checks the serial number of a "NEW" iPod against a database of stolen S/N's or even twice a year, I can live with that. It is when you store information on a user, tie it to an account, or can gather other information by the frequency of iPod use, that I my problems arise.



    There are some obvious oversights in iTunes that wreak of RIAA restraints and I am split between pinning this iPod check on Apple or the RIAAA. On one hand, Apple does respect users privacy pretty well but not 100%, (MiniStore anybody?) but on the other hand this technology could easily be abused for marketing purposes and I can imagine Apple shooting themselves in the foot rather than walk with the RIAA by forbidding such technology in their contract.
  • Reply 8 of 34
    mattyjmattyj Posts: 898member
    If there was some kind of disabling solution for whenever a stolen iPod identified via serial number was connected to the internet through iTunes I would support it, and it would perhaps have a good chance of making such a crime pointless.



    Sounds like a good idea, and shouldn't be too difficult to implement I suppose. One would have to send Apple the iPod box/packaging to prove original ownership perhaps, and make a non hackable disable-er thing to make the iPod stop functioning completely.
  • Reply 9 of 34
    wezy904wezy904 Posts: 4member
    I didnt realize so many people were against the thought of the "big brother" idea. I trust in apple and I think I am in good hands. I do not think they would do anything nefarious with my information. That being assumed, the information stored on an information server which can only be accessed with the username and password of the initial registered user. If both informations ie, username and password are encrypted and are needed to make sence of the ip addy, date, and serial number. With only one the information is useless. Have it on two seperate servers for authenticity verification?





    Im no securities expert, it just seems alot simpler than people are making this out to be. I am over the first hump of apple doing nasty things with my information.



    Suggestions?
  • Reply 10 of 34
    mattyjmattyj Posts: 898member
    There would be no need to keep or use the IP address, just deactivate iPods black listed whenever they're connected to iTunes on a computer with an internet connection. Simple, a deterrent (criminals will soon stop stealing iPods if they find out they won't work) and an otherwise non invasive technique and very effective.



    Sure you lose out on an iPod, but then again, if stealing iPods becomes useless (which it most notably would to most) then iPods wouldn't be stolen.



    Of course you could get really anal criminals that load iTunes on to a computer without an internet connection and use the iPod that way. Though if the machine itself goes on the internet the serial number could be kept on iTunes (on the machine) and "phone home" to verify the serial number and then disable the iPod when it is next connected, so disconnecting the internet whilst using a stolen iPod wouldn't work either...



  • Reply 11 of 34
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    The #1 use for a stolen iPod is to sell it to a noob.
  • Reply 12 of 34
    max_naylormax_naylor Posts: 194member
    I'm sorry for being so confrontational, but I feel that it is not Apple's responsibility to play a part in the recovery of lost iPods. Unless I have completely misinterpreted your argument. However, I do agree with mattyj's argument that the iPods should be disabled. Still, imagine how many 'broken' iPods will be appearing on places such as eBay, etc. I don't feel that this is a 'Big Brother' issue, think of how many legal entities have your details for much less valid reasons.



    I also agree that music should be allowed to be redownloaded from the iTMS, just recently I lost around £50 of music when I accidentally erased my hard drive (I was mucking about with some partitioning tool - you can blame my curiosity in Windows Vista for that one). Luckily, I have most of the music on my Mac (the erased drive was in a PC), so I suppose in reality I've lost about three quid's worth.



    Anyway, going back to the topic at hand, can't you call up your mobile phone network and get the device disabled if you discover it's stolen? I think you could use a similar technique without invading privacy if you really wanted to remotely disabled iPods. I'm sure there's a solution.



    Oh, and by the way I do apologise for coming across as a bit of a twat - I didn't realise until I looked at the post the next day.
  • Reply 13 of 34
    mattyjmattyj Posts: 898member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by max_naylor

    Anyway, going back to the topic at hand, can't you call up your mobile phone network and get the device disabled if you discover it's stolen? I think you could use a similar technique without invading privacy if you really wanted to remotely disabled iPods. I'm sure there's a solution.



    Yes you can do that with mobile phones, the sim card gets deactivated when you claim it is stolen, although it may cost you something. Obviously iPods aren't wireless, so the method of disabling them would not be as fool proof as the mobile phone solution, however it is a solution nonetheless.
  • Reply 14 of 34
    i bought my ipod from a girl at my school. so did my brother. so does that mean we would be tracked according to your plan? they were both used and registered under diffrent names before we had them.



    oh and on the whole point of stolen ipods becoming useless because they would be locked up, there are always hacks out there to undo them. i used them on unlocking my psp. and people are always working to get around them. so i think that locking up ipods with software just slows down hackers. it dosent stop them.
  • Reply 15 of 34
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    In my mind the check would occur only when you first associate your iPod with a computer. There are always ways to get around this security, but if you you know you need to do that, well...



    I know, I just made the dreaded "If you fight for privacy, what are you hiding" statement. Ten lashings.
  • Reply 16 of 34
    eh, i bet the patriot act says something tricky like we have the right to track your music choices through your ipod.
  • Reply 17 of 34
    mattyjmattyj Posts: 898member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by israel's anger

    i bought my ipod from a girl at my school. so did my brother. so does that mean we would be tracked according to your plan? they were both used and registered under diffrent names before we had them.



    oh and on the whole point of stolen ipods becoming useless because they would be locked up, there are always hacks out there to undo them. i used them on unlocking my psp. and people are always working to get around them. so i think that locking up ipods with software just slows down hackers. it dosent stop them.




    Only if there were reported stolen. And the original owner would have to produce the paper work and box for the iPod they wanted to claim it as stolen. So no, you wouldn't be tracked.



    I would make a measure built into the iPod that once identified, would fry a chip in the iPod so that it physically could not work anymore, not a simple hack. There aren't ways around that.
  • Reply 18 of 34
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    It's $300 or $400. That's pretty damned cheap. It isn't your fucking car. It isn't your computer. Get over it.
  • Reply 19 of 34
    sorry no. im a senior in hs. i dont have 300-400 USD to throw around.
  • Reply 20 of 34
    Quote:

    Originally posted by israel's anger

    sorry no. im a senior in hs. i dont have 300-400 USD to throw around.



    Simple. Keep the fucking thing in your pocket. Unless you get jumped (don't wear the white headphones in a dangerous neighborhood), you pretty much deserve losing it.
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