NYPD Creates Special Team for Recovering Stolen Apple Devices

Apple device thefts in New York have risen over the times and since smartphones are becoming more and more common, it’s becoming a favourite target by thieves but unfortunately for the police, it’s hard for them to keep a track on the reports of “Apple picking”. To combat this new nuisance, the NYPD have formed a dedicated team whose job is to catch thieves who steal Apple products such as iPhones and iPads from unsuspecting people.

If an Apple device is stolen in New York by iThieves, then iDetectives will attempt to track it down by using International Mobile Station Equipment identity tracking numbers. The detectives will then give the number to Apple who will then use it to track the devices’ current location and even detect if the device is re-registered with another wireless carrier. Once tracked, Apple will pass the information back to the NYPD’s iDetective team.

NYPD’s spokesman Paul Browne said:

“We’re looking for ways to find individuals who have stolen Apple products and return the products to their original owners. It is being done to learn the pattern who is stealing.”

There were 2 notable cases that involves theft of Apple products. The first was when an iPad was tracked to the Dominican Republic which was then recovered by a NYPD Intelligence cop whereas in another case, a man was caught under the suspicion of selling stolen iPads at a city bus stop. Both the cases were solved using Apple’s help, so the partnership could work very well.

Many of these devices are sold as second-hand property to people unaware that these units are stolen, but the police may confiscate the unit from such individuals to return it back to the original owner.

Kevin Mahaffery, Co-founder of security firm Lookout said although this technique of tracking and identifying stolen phones using unique identifiers is something that was used for many years, the difficult part however is integrating it with law enforcement to track down stolen devices effectively.

Sadly, there’s no love for Windows or Android powered phones by the NYPD yet!