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stolen iPhone...

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Posted by: Mav0813

My friend's iPhone got swiped while he was at a restaurant. I guess he didn't know that it was misplaced. Is there any way he could track it down or anything? Apparently he can't call ATT since he has plans that go way back...unlimited voice and unlimited mMode...his iPhone was unlocked and apparently, ATT didn't know...so he doesn't want to lose his old plan and hopefully somehow recover his iPhone. Is there anything he can do?


Posted by: amkls704

In short, not really. I mean, he can call Apple and flag it as stolen I suppose, but I don't even know what that would do.

The best option would be to tell your friend to save all their christmas money to buy a new one because more than likely, he isn't going to see it again.


Posted by: DomiNAT3

yea my friends iphone got stolen too except he was jumped by 4 kids when he got off his bus

but I called apple because I figured if ima get one what if this happens to me too and the guy said they dont cover if it gets stolen but some home owners insurances might cover that sort of situation


Posted by: BornInBremen

The only thing he can do is report it stolen to the police; they'll file a police report, which he has to send to AT&T & Apple. If anyone tries to activate it, they'll contact the police with the info. but since it's unlocked, chaances are the thief will simply put their SIM in it and be done, which means they'll never activate it.

in short, he's screwed.


Posted by: SaM5246

Quote:
Originally Posted by BornInBremen
The only thing he can do is report it stolen to the police; they'll file a police report, which he has to send to AT&T & Apple. If anyone tries to activate it, they'll contact the police with the info. but since it's unlocked, chaances are the thief will simply put their SIM in it and be done, which means they'll never activate it.

in short, he's screwed.


Yeah I'm sure they would rather disappoint the customer and NOT activate the stolen phone so they can lose out on the $65+ revenue from the customer. Seems good in theory but realistically nothing would probably happen.


Posted by: toomer

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mav0813
My friend's iPhone got swiped while he was at a restaurant. I guess he didn't know that it was misplaced. Is there any way he could track it down or anything? Apparently he can't call ATT since he has plans that go way back...unlimited voice and unlimited mMode...his iPhone was unlocked and apparently, ATT didn't know...so he doesn't want to lose his old plan and hopefully somehow recover his iPhone. Is there anything he can do?


As far as keeping his plan, he should just call AT&T, state that he lost his phone, and as a result he will need a new SIM card issued for his account. I can't see where that would present any problem (but maybe there's something strange about AT&T that I'm unaware of). He should be able to put his new SIM card in any phone and start using it until he can save up for another iPhone...

And that's exactly what he'll need to do. If it was actually stolen, he's likely not getting it back. And despite what folks might say about "call AT&T, they can block the IMEI #" that's all unfounded speculation, IMO. I've never actually seen any instances where a US carrier actually did this. So he should fill out a police report, in case his homeowner's insurance (or his parents' homeowner's insurance) might cover it.

If it was simply mislaid/lost, there's a chance that someone might have returned it to a local police station. Again, back to the police station ...


Posted by: mripguru

Sprint does it with ESN blacklisting.

Quote:
Originally Posted by toomer
As far as keeping his plan, he should just call AT&T, state that he lost his phone, and as a result he will need a new SIM card issued for his account. I can't see where that would present any problem (but maybe there's something strange about AT&T that I'm unaware of). He should be able to put his new SIM card in any phone and start using it until he can save up for another iPhone...

And that's exactly what he'll need to do. If it was actually stolen, he's likely not getting it back. And despite what folks might say about "call AT&T, they can block the IMEI #" that's all unfounded speculation, IMO. I've never actually seen any instances where a US carrier actually did this. So he should fill out a police report, in case his homeowner's insurance (or his parents' homeowner's insurance) might cover it.

If it was simply mislaid/lost, there's a chance that someone might have returned it to a local police station. Again, back to the police station ...



Posted by: mbranscum

Quote:
Originally Posted by BornInBremen
If anyone tries to activate it, they'll contact the police with the info.


Wrong. As a detective who has worked with AT&T on many phone thefts I can tell you they don't look for stolen cell phones or turn in people who activate them, although they have that ability.

The only way we have been successful in getting phones tracked or put on a watch list is with a supoena or search warrant. Which usually stemmed from a serious crime we are investigating.


Posted by: hurley81388

i am a seasonal employee at ATT in florida and we call the police and won't activate the phone if the IMEI is stolen...no idea how it works everywhere else but that's how we do business at the store i work at


Posted by: SaM5246

Quote:
Originally Posted by toomer
As far as keeping his plan, he should just call AT&T, state....

If it was simply mislaid/lost, there's a chance that someone might have returned it to a local police station. Again, back to the police station ...


If it was my phone, I would hope too, but omg yeah right


Posted by: SaM5246

Quote:
Originally Posted by mbranscum
Wrong. As a detective who has worked with AT&T on many phone thefts I can tell you they don't look for stolen cell phones or turn in people who activate them, although they have that ability.

The only way we have been successful in getting phones tracked or put on a watch list is with a supoena or search warrant. Which usually stemmed from a serious crime we are investigating.



Yes, AT&T/Cingular is not out there to catch criminals. Also someone could have legitamately bought this on ebay or from someone else or even found it and couldn't get the phone back to the owner. Turning it in to the police would cause a cop to have a cool new cell phone. Now the cop can use Google maps to find the nearest Dunkin Doughnuts..err I mean fight crime.


Posted by: BornInBremen

Quote:
Originally Posted by SaM5246
Yeah I'm sure they would rather disappoint the customer and NOT activate the stolen phone so they can lose out on the $65+ revenue from the customer. Seems good in theory but realistically nothing would probably happen.
Actually, I've encoutered the stolen phone on AT&T before. As long as they have a copy of the police report showing it was stolen, AT&T will send the "new" subscriber information to the police, who will then go pick it - and the person - up (it is stolen property, after all.)

The argument "I bought it on eBay" or "I couldn't find the owner, so I kept it" is not a defense for receiving stolen property.


Posted by: SaM5246

Quote:
Originally Posted by BornInBremen
Actually, I've encoutered the stolen phone on AT&T before. As long as they have a copy of the police report showing it was stolen, AT&T will send the "new" subscriber information to the police, who will then go pick it - and the person - up (it is stolen property, after all.)

The argument "I bought it on eBay" or "I couldn't find the owner, so I kept it" is not a defense for receiving stolen property.




what if you found the phone? I doubt there would be any criminal charges over a silly phone. Most likely they will not go "pick up the phone" from the person. You are being ridiculous now. I think you are making this up too. Nice try though, no one is dumb enough to believe that AT&T is going to turn someone in and miss out on the $65+ revenue from that account for having an iphone and also lose out on a sale of a new phone from the person who lost it.


Posted by: BornInBremen

Quote:
Originally Posted by SaM5246


what if you found the phone? I doubt there would be any criminal charges over a silly phone. Most likely they will not go "pick up the phone" from the person. You are being ridiculous now. I think you are making this up too. Nice try though, no one is dumb enough to believe that AT&T is going to turn someone in and miss out on the $65+ revenue from that account for having an iphone and also lose out on a sale of a new phone from the person who lost it.
Wow, so you're telling me you MISSED the tale of the stolen sidekick? Heck, just go to Google and type in stolen cellphone arrest for hundreds of stories.

AT&T would also not want the settlement that came with a lawsuit for failing to report stolen property, which they can track and do report, as long as a valid police report has been filed and sent to their legal dept.

It's not rocket science.


Posted by: turbo-sc

damn that sucks. Yea there's really not much you can do with an already unlocked iPhone. Just file a police report and forward it to att / apple, maybe they'll have some sympathy and hook you up with a discount.




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