“French hairstylist Pascal Bensimon turned himself in to sheriff’s deputies Monday, after a 14-month investigation implicated him in the theft of Kevin Costner’s laptop, which contained the actor’s private wedding photographs,” Troy Hooper reports for The Aspen Daily News. “The owner of the swanky hair salon on Hyman Avenue that bears his name, Bensimon, 44, was hired to provide hair services for guests attending Costner’s wedding to Christine Baumgartner on Sept. 25, 2004, at his ranch east of Aspen off of Highway 82.”
“According to an affidavit filed at the Pitkin County Courthouse, the day of the star-studded ceremony, Costner’s personal Apple Powerbook G4 disappeared, along with a digital camera that contained pictures of the wedding. The laptop is valued at $1,500,” Hooper reports. “A month later, Bensimon’s son allegedly contacted Apple Computers, proclaimed to be the owner of the laptop, and said he had forgotten the password needed to access its contents. Due to a technicality, Apple did not initially discover that the laptop serial number that Bensimon’s son referred to matched the one Costner reported stolen and a new password was assigned to the computer, the affidavit said.”
“Mark Sheppard, who works as a computer consultant for the Costner family, suspected Bensimon stole the laptop based on conversations he had with officials at Apple earlier this year. Costner’s wife, Christina, then contacted Phillips who said she believed her employer might have taken the computer. Meanwhile, investigator Ryan obtained a court order that enabled him to confirm Bensimon’s son had contacted Apple and requested a new password,” Hooper reports. “So last month, Sheppard posed as a freelance journalist for Travel & Leisure magazine under the guise that he was interested in writing a story about Pascal’s haughty hairdos, which fetch upwards of $400 for a woman’s haircut and coloring. Although Ryan could not legally participate in the sting, he asked Sheppard to notify him if Sheppard could confirm that Bensimon had Costner’s computer. Using an alias, Sheppard walked into Pascal Bensimon Hair Salon on Nov. 18 and requested to see photos of Bensimon’s work. The hairstylist brought out a laptop to show Sheppard photos of his work. Sheppard verified the serial numbers matched those of Costner’s computer.”
Full article with more here.
You just can’t make this stuff up.
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Hey Kevin!
” rel=”nofollow”>What’s on your PowerBook?
Some computer consultant. He could have at least set up File Vault on Kevin’s account and turned off automatic login.
I guess “Inquiring minds want to know.”
I feel so ashamed about responding to this piece.
Hair today. Gone tomorrow
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Strange. I’m sorry, but with as much as movie stars pay to get their hair done, you’d think this guy would be able to afford a laptop. And even if he couldn’t, you’d think they’d be smart enough to NOT call Apple for support on a piece of stolen equipment. I’m not sure which level of stupidity confounds me most.
So they spent 10k to get back a 1500 dollar laptop. Hmmmm, only the stars.
$1400 – That makes it a 15 incher, right?
quote from Jeff:
“Some computer consultant. He could have at least set up File Vault on Kevin’s account and turned off automatic login.”
You must be lame or something. Or maybe just stupid. The kid calls to get the password reassigned. Why do you think he had to?
Jackass.
Try reading the article next time.
MW: thinking… as in Jeff clearly WASN’T thinking when he ripped off his mind numbing reply.
Yes, another slooooooooow news day for Mdn….
How does one verify the serial number on the PB wothout having physical access (ie, handle the computer himself)?
To verify serial number, Apple menu>About This Mac and mouse-click the Mac OS X version number twice. You will see the MacOS X build # and PB serial number.
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nothing to say about this article……….
But i thought it was funny. this is MAC daily news and there’s an advertisement for microsoft on the side of the comment box.
“Microsoft
Looking for a financial management solution?
Start by asking the right questions.”
I said “uh………………………… no.”
Peanut butter jelly time.
just how is it that Apple Tech service can supply a password to any arbitrary laptop without having physical possession of it? I thought you had to start from the CD or erase the system if you can’t get into it.
ok sonny, let’s go take our meds and have a nappy time!
Stupid Frogs
Obviously, he didn’t steal the laptop just to get the laptop; not if he called Apple to get the password to access data. He was after the data! If he just wanted a PowerBook he could have just formatted the hard drive and installed the OS himself.
The title should read…
“Nut Busted on Hyman Avenue”
“To verify serial number, Apple menu>About This Mac and mouse-click the Mac OS X version number twice. You will see the MacOS X build # and PB serial number.”
OMG… so this buffoon of a hairdresser let someone physically handle his (stolen) laptop? He deserved to get cuaght.
if this story doesnt prove that macs arent 100% imune i dont know what will. i think you all should be scared that the goverment could use the same tactics to acess your computer, ie patriot act. and you might never even know.
“To verify serial number, Apple menu>About This Mac and mouse-click the Mac OS X version number twice. You will see the MacOS X build # and PB serial number.”
PowerBook users who have had their Logic Board replaced will discover that you CANNOT see the Serial Number if you do the above, I found out by chance and apparently there is nothing you can do to reapply it. Doesn’t show up in Apple System Profiler either. Weird.
MW: court
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French(!) Hairdresser(!!!) likes Macs – why am I not surprised?
Sorry… just couldn’t resist that one
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Heh-heh-heh
“i think you all should be scared that the goverment could use the same tactics to acess your computer, ie patriot act. and you might never even know.”
I wouldn’t panic. The FBI has to send Macs to Canada to get them cracked. (Scroll down to the bottom of the linked article under the heading, “Some Surprises”).
” Due to a technicality, Apple did not initially discover that the laptop serial number that Bensimon’s son referred to matched the one Costner reported stolen and a new password was assigned to the computer, the affidavit said.”
Technicality my rear end.
Apple bears a lot of responsibility by giving out passwords willy nilly. Or should that be stevie weavy?
Apple Computer Hands Out Password to Kevin Costner’s Stolen Laptop
We are always told that the people with our information will guard that information. Governments, corporations and businesses assure us that our “privacy rights will be protected.”
Unless, of course, someone steals your Apple laptop computer. All the thief has to do is to call Apple, and claim that they have forgotten the password.
Even if you are Kevin Costner – Apple then merrily hands out a new password so the thief can access your data.
NOW THE MORE IMPORTANT QUESTION: How did Apple know Costner’s Password?
Does the Apple Mac OS-X operating system report the password to Apple every time you log onto the web?
Does Apple have a “master password” based upon the laptop’s serial number?
Does Apple provide passwords to Law Enforcement with or without warrant – perhaps under the anti-terrorist laws – that would allow someone to crawl around my computer while I’m online?
Well? Apple? What’s the story?
And this is why Lost Budgie uses PGP Disk Encryption as well as other means to protect his data.
Posted on Lost Budgie Blog
Wonder if there will be a 14-month investigation if I lose MY laptop…