AirTag helps recover $7,000 in stolen camera gear

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AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in General Discussion edited May 2022
Apple's AirTag has helped recover photography equipment and other items valued at $7,000, by helping a man on vacation in Australia track his stolen possessions.




A photographer's worst nightmare is to discover their kit has been stolen or otherwise gone missing. In the case of one Sydney resident's sudden loss of hardware, there is a happy ending because they used AirTags.

Graham Tait was on holiday in South Australia in early May, but while at a hotel, the theft of his items took place. Goods including a notebook, a Sony camera, a wallet, a GoPro, and other gear valued at AUS $10,000 ($7,000) was pilfered from the break-in.

"My car was broken into whilst we were traveling in the Flinders Ranges last night and they took a laptop bag and camera - both of which had AirTags fitted," Tait told 9 News.

A camera stolen and recovered by AirTag [Graham Tait/9News]
A camera stolen and recovered by AirTag [Graham Tait/9News]


Since he actively used AirTags with his items, Tait then broke out the Find My app and tracked down the missing hardware. It turned out that his possessions were taken to a different room within the hotel he was staying in.

Police were called after the discovery. Law enforcement are now "dealing with the alleged offender," the report states.

Despite being the target of bad press surrounding its anti-stalking measures, AirTag has been used in a number of more positive ways. In October, it was used to track down a stolen vehicle, while in January, it was employed to keep track of a family's belongings during a house move when a shady moving truck driver failed to arrive on time.

In one famous case in January, AirTags were used to uncover a secret German intelligence agency.

Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    dewmedewme Posts: 6,023member
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
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  • Reply 2 of 8
    hmlongcohmlongco Posts: 630member
    dewme said:
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
    Unfortunately. And also unfortunate that the "solution" is to bring in more people with guns to escalate the situation.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 3 of 8
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,819member
    hmlongco said:
    dewme said:
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
    Unfortunately. And also unfortunate that the "solution" is to bring in more people with guns to escalate the situation.
    Are you really saying that it's unfortunate that the police have access to weapons? Or are you saying it's unfortunate that thieves are caught? I'm just asking. I really don't know what you meant there.

    There are four major countries in the world where police don't carry guns. Did you check if Australia had armed police before you made that comment? Or were. you just assuming it?
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  • Reply 4 of 8
    tokyojimutokyojimu Posts: 537member
    If it were the US, the police would say they are too busy and refuse to get involved.
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  • Reply 5 of 8
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,164member
    hmlongco said:
    dewme said:
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
    Unfortunately. And also unfortunate that the "solution" is to bring in more people with guns to escalate the situation.

    You're more than welcome to let the thieves take your stuff.  I for one have zero problems with police protecting themselves in the event the thief also is armed.  

    Such an ignorant position you take.  Pacifists like you are the reasons why crime is on the rise as thieves know people like you would rather provide them with hugs and kisses instead of consequences for their actions. 
    muthuk_vanalingam
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 6 of 8
    Xedxed Posts: 3,166member
    22july2013 said:
    hmlongco said:
    dewme said:
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
    Unfortunately. And also unfortunate that the "solution" is to bring in more people with guns to escalate the situation.
    Are you really saying that it's unfortunate that the police have access to weapons? Or are you saying it's unfortunate that thieves are caught? I'm just asking. I really don't know what you meant there.

    There are four major countries in the world where police don't carry guns. Did you check if Australia had armed police before you made that comment? Or were. you just assuming it?
    I believe he's saying that while these can be used to track stolen items, Apple has been very clear that these are for lost—as in misplaced—items.

    The difference being that a stolen item will inevitably lead to someone getting hurt (or worse) when the owner tries to retrieve a stolen item. We've already seen such stories over the years with people simply using Find My nee Find My iPhone to locate a phone that is showing up at a location incorrectly and someone is pounding on someone's door wanting to get it back, just to have it then move to another place.

    Let's keep in mind that someone has sued Apple for a car accident the driver caused for texting on their iPhone.
    dewme
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  • Reply 7 of 8
    sphericspheric Posts: 2,757member
    Xed said:
    22july2013 said:
    hmlongco said:
    dewme said:
    This is exactly the kind of story that demonstrates the value of AirTag but I’m sure it scares the hell out of Apple executives. 

    It’s very fortunate that this victim engaged with law enforcement rather than trying to confront the perpetrator to recover their property by themselves. In every case and especially in the US you must always assume the perpetrator is armed and dangerous - without question and regardless of the value of the stolen property. 
    Unfortunately. And also unfortunate that the "solution" is to bring in more people with guns to escalate the situation.
    Are you really saying that it's unfortunate that the police have access to weapons? Or are you saying it's unfortunate that thieves are caught? I'm just asking. I really don't know what you meant there.

    There are four major countries in the world where police don't carry guns. Did you check if Australia had armed police before you made that comment? Or were. you just assuming it?
    I believe he's saying that while these can be used to track stolen items, Apple has been very clear that these are for lost—as in misplaced—items.

    The difference being that a stolen item will inevitably lead to someone getting hurt (or worse) when the owner tries to retrieve a stolen item. 
    Wow. Living in the U.S. must be a terrifying experience. 
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  • Reply 8 of 8
    123Go123go Posts: 21member
    I live in The state of Australia that this occurred. South Australia is the state. The Flinders rangers is a beautiful area. Quite arid and it looks a bit like Joshua tree region in the US. The Police are armed and they are employed by the state government not the local city government. However, gun violence is rare. It would be unlikely an alleged petty criminal was carrying a fire arm but it could happen. It is a very serious crime to carry a gun on ones person even if you have a licence to own a gun.
    There are very strict laws about storage and transporting fire arms. The criminal would do more time in jail for having a gun then theft.

    If a person was shot and killed by police it would a major news story on TV and it is a very big deal in this state. 

    I expect the local police found it a bit exciting to have some actual crime to investigate. in my experience police in country regions are generally helpful. 
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