Look out, fanbois: One in two nicked mobes is an iPhone - cops
Half of the phones stolen in London over the summer were iPhones, the capital's cops reported this week. According to new statistics, phone-related crime, particularly snatching, was up year on year. Between April and September, 28,800 mobes out of 56,680 nicked handsets in London were Apple pocket strokers. That's an average of …
This topic is closed for new posts.
so dont buy an iPhone (or look like a mug who buys one) and you'll be less likely to have your phone stolen :)
That's like the Police saying to women to not dress up like "sluts" and they won't get raped.
You're shifting the blame onto the victim away from the criminal.
What about telling girls you wouldn't stare at their breasts / bottoms if they didn't dress like sluts, is that more acceptable?
No, put it away
Anyone who doesn't keep their phone in their pocket or bag is tempting fate. Yes, so the iShiny is the desirable phone to have, but for God's sake, be sensible and put it away!
Re: No, put it away
It's not a lot of use stuffed in a bag.
"they're not a lot of use stuffed in a bag"
Wait, are you still on about mobes, or was it about female body parts?
OR making the victim realise that they played a part too!
Re: No, put it away
"Yes, so the iShiny is the desirable phone to have last decade......
50% of stolen phones are iPhones which only account for 23% of the market share.
There must be a lot of dross out there.
Re: No, put it away
Indeed - whilst victim blaming is wrong, it's not unreasonable to take precautions, like not advertising expensive goods (as many advertisements tell us).
I can't help noticing that it's almost always Apple users who walk around carrying their phones in front of them - why this is, I don't know. On top of that, the fewer models makes them more recognisable as an expensive phone, and you've got the obvious huge logo on the front, whilst most phones are much more subtle.
Plus, I have to wonder why this is news anyway - smells like another "It's news, because it's got Apple in the title". Would the police be reporting this if it was any other manufacturer coming up to? Reminds me of the spate of "ipads getting stolen" media stories, that just act as more Appleverts...
Re: No, put it away @Lord Voldemortgage
Ever heard of... OMG... a handsfree kit? Or... *gasp* earphones?
The majority of phones are stolen because they are left on a table, or in plain view where an opportunist thief can walk by and swipe it. Leave the phone in your jacket pocket, or in a purse (if you're female), or a bag. When the damn thing rings, you take it out. Problem solved. I have *never* had a phone stolen, probably because I'm sensible about where I put my phone. My phone stays out of sight until I need to use it.
Those who constantly have their iThingies stolen should learn to... put it away. We *know* you have one. We don't *care*. Get over it.
Apple a Victim of their own success
Is it not simple, thieves are stealing to sell and iPhones are (rightly or wrongly) more desirable amongst the general population. IMEI blocking only works to block the phone in the country of origin, so until this goes global, mobile phones will continue to be targeted by crooks.
Unless people are looking to buy an elaborate iPod touch.......Lets face it, not far from the truth if you buy it from the Apple store.
Re: Apple a Victim of their own success
I would have thought it was more down to people with good phone insurance ...
"I have this iPhone, and I can't get my money back, but I do have phone insurance" ...
At least my boss would agree ... his swear jar for this year is full already.
Re: Apple a Victim of their own success
iPhones don't exactly have to rely on just imei blocking. You have to activate the things via apple, reporting it as stolen should get the imei and the serial number blocked from their networks too, leaving only jailbreaks to get around it.
In theory they should be more difficult to deal with stolen due to the walled garden of apple/iTunes. Admittedly you could use it standalone, but it relies entirely on third party tools and functionality.
Re: Apple a Victim of their own success
You have to activate the things via apple, reporting it as stolen should get the imei and the serial number blocked from their networks too, leaving only jailbreaks to get around it.
The problem with that is that you have to enable tracking for the iPhone (it's tied to that service), which allows location tracking data to be shipped to a Unsafe Harbor nation. You are thus faced with a choice: give an untrusted 3rd party full knowledge of where you are at all times of be sure the phone won't come back when it gets nicked. Depends on your privacy needs, of course.
Re: Apple a Victim of their own success
Thieves don't go for what's more desirable (Android is the biggest platform, Samsung sells more Android phones alone, and the S3 is the biggest single selling model), they go for what's most expensive. With the added bonus here of being far more easily recognisable.
Presumably this also means around 1-in-2 stolen phones BOUGHT is an iPhone too, meaning fanbois are, on average, more inherently criminal than the rest of the population?
Fanboys would buy one new. People buying hooky goods buy whatever is on offer.
People stealing the phones go for Apple since it is easily recognisable.
Re: Fanboys would buy one new.
Nah, don't you read all those comments about "I sold my 5 year old iPhone 3 for 95% of the original purchase price on Ebay?" Somebody has to be buying all of them
Stolen != Bought (Well, not necessarily anyway)
That assumes that they were actually stolen: not just a lie to get the next hipster model on insurance.
Maybe the crims are exhibiting brand loyalty but decided to go for a big discount this time ;)
People stealing the phones go for Apple since it is easily recognisable.
By that reasoning there would be lots of Samsung 'phones stolen too, as we all know that Samsung 'phones just copy the look of Apple ones.
"People stealing the phones go for Apple since it is easily recognisable"
Yeah! Clones.
I wonder
are these figures possibly being massaged by people who want an iPhone but can't afford a new one so when the chance arises it is 'of course it was an iPhone6 officer, would I fib to you?'
Odd
It's tricky to know what the demographics of iPhone and Android are, Rich young people buy iPhones but lots of normal young people buy cheaper Android handsets. As a % of the youth I can't imagine the iPhone being the most popular just through it's cost and they don't sell enough to cover the majority of the demographic.
Cut the bullsh*te
"It's tricky to know what the demographics of iPhone and Android are, Rich young people buy iPhones but lots of normal young people buy cheaper Android handsets. As a % of the youth I can't imagine the iPhone being the most popular just through it's cost and they don't sell enough to cover the majority of the demographic."
Same tragic old story repeated and bleated by the sam old folk.
iPhones are NOT expensive! They do NOT imbue the owner with a greater status or image or wealth.
If anything they imbue PIKEY through and through.
So, ladies, stop the iPhone is expensive crap, eh?
Re: Cut the bullsh*te
And Obviously! has never said in the past that iphones are expensive tat.
Re: Cut the bullsh*te
You have changed your tune (or should that be iTune?).
Apple marketeers made the iPhone desirable to the spivs. The spivs hail Apple and because it's expensive, makes them feel special. The spivs now believe the hype spouted by the Apple marketeers.
http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/3/2011/08/19/apple_samsung/#c_1151622
Safer to carry an iPhone ?
As reported somewhere/sometime, mugger disappointed that you only have a 5 year old Nokia will stab you just out of pique.
Re: Safer to carry an iPhone ?
Damn, and I thought I was safe with my N8.
Re: Safer to carry an iPhone ?
Yeah, but you can beat a mugger to death with a Nokia
Re: Safer to carry an iPhone ?
"Yeah, but you can beat a mugger to death with a Nokia"
If they are an iPhone owner, they could just BORE you to death with the same old wives tales they heard last decade and still cling too.
Re: Safer to carry an iPhone ?
"If they are an iPhone owner, they could just BORE you to death with the same old wives tales they heard last decade and still cling too."
Alternatively you could bore everyone on here to death with your usual crap.
Tellingly....
From the Evening Standard (so treat with caution) "The Met is in talks with Apple in an effort to make iPhones more secure. But privately police admit that mobile phone companies are unlikely to take serious action when every theft means someone probably buying another handset".
Re: Tellingly....
Yep. The more they're stolen, the more they sell. Same reason they're not built to last.
I'd have thought...
...the main reason for this is that iPhone owners (amazingly, still) sit on the tube and walk about with their phone on display. Even when they're not using them I've seen so many iPhone owners simply brandishing them. I've got news, guys, the only people that do care are the ones who've made this stat a reality.
Re: I'd have thought...
If I had a Samsung I would keep it well hidden.
Re: I'd have thought...
I take it you are ashamed of your identity, seeing as you've hidden that as well.
(sorry couldn't resist)
Re: I'd have thought...
"If I had a Samsung I would keep it well hidden."
What with? A house? They're enormous! The thieves are probably worried they might get hit with it.
Re: I'd have thought...
What a load of bollocks. A large majority of people on the tube use their phone/tablet/kindle on the tube, irrelevant of what phone they have. This morning, I saw iphones, a galaxy s, one guy with an ipad, and a whole mess of kindles and nooks.
Re: I'd have thought...
So you saw multiple iphones, and only one other phone - given that iphones are a minority of the market, this kind of proves his point.
(And I agree with him, and not just in London, and the point isn't simply when they're using it - I see people who always carry it in their hands, even when walking and not using it, and it seems to be almost always iphones. When they're listening on headphones, reminds me of an Ood.)
Here's why
It is a proven fact* all apple fanbois are hipsters
It is also a proven fact* that hipsters spend their days in coffee shops with their iGadgetz out.
It is also a proven fact* that they'll leave the table at some point, for another coffee, or a loo break, and leave their phone on the table.
Okay so none of those facts are proven, but the last one is fairly accurate. I used to go to a coffee shop to meet up with a few friends, the number of people who got up and walked off while leaving their phone on the table was astounding, and yet 9/10 it was an iPhone.
* These facts are fictional
No point stealing Android - pretty worthless second hand - or new for that matter ;)
Yeah, they go for the wallet instead knowing this person hasn't spent all their cash on a mediocre phone.
Apple Can Drive Down Crime
"No point stealing Android - pretty worthless second hand - or new for that matter ;)"
Well, that said, if the thieves and muggers used Apple maps to try and locate their potential mark/destination you can pretty much guarantee they'll probably end up in the middle of the North Sea. Ergo stealing iPhones could help drive crime against the person down :)
"No point stealing Android - pretty worthless second hand - or new for that matter ;)"
More like they can't run away with them. Have you seen the size of the things!
Re: Apple Can Drive Down Crime
Except if you knew squat you would realise the iMaps issue is greatly exaggerated by non-iPhone users and regardless we now have both iMaps and Google Maps and the new Google Maps client is better than the previous Google Maps in iOS 5.
So before anyone claims Google Maps is perfect I am reminded of this:
http://au.news.yahoo.com/technology/news/article/-/15610781/police-warn-of-safety-concerns-from-google-maps/
This topic is closed for new posts.
