“Frustrated iPod owners are angry, their music taken from them by thieves [that] Dateline caught on hidden camera,” Chris Hansen reports for NBC News.
“Dateline investigates if it’s possible, using some of the same high-tech capabilities that make the iPod the phenomenon it is, to track down people who take iPods that don’t belong to them,” Hansen reports.
“The iPod — it’s everywhere. Originally billed as ‘a thousand songs in your pocket,’ it can now hold up to 20,000 songs, 100 hours of video, 25,000 photos–and with a staggering 110 million sold, the device has become an international icon and in an indispensable part of life,” Hansen reports. “But… if you’ve got to have it, so do thieves.”
“We bought dozens of iPods. These were iPods that we’d use as bait to be stolen — or deliberately lost,” Hansen reports “We hired a software company, Blackfin Tech, to help us. Jefferson Jewell runs Blackfin. His solution? To simply demonstrate whether an iPod has the capability of being tracked, we’d create our own database — just like Apple has.”
“We’d try to get basic information from whoever plugged it in, in this case from people the iPods didn’t belong to,” Hansen reports. How would we get the information? Instead of putting used iPods out as bait, we’d use new ones that were brand new in the box. To a thief, they’d be exactly like the real thing.”
“Except for this: with a new iPod, the first thing you normally do is download Apple iTunes software, which allows you to buy and download music as well as provide basic information about the user to Apple,” Hansen reports.
“To get our bait iPods to work, whoever takes them will have to install a disc. What they won’t know is that when they click ‘I Agree’ on a licensing agreement that appears on-screen, they’ll be consenting to provide some of the same kind of information they provide Apple to Dateline,” Hansen reports.
Find out what happened in the full text article here or watch the video report here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “David” for the heads up.]
Should Apple track down missing iPods for free? Can they even do so for manpower and/or legal reasons? Perhaps, as Newsweek’s Steve Levy suggests in the full piece, Apple could offer such tracking as part of a paid service like AppleCare. In any case, it seems that Apple’s already working on a solution.
In the full article, Hansen also reports that “although Apple declined requests for interviews and comment regarding this report, the company — which consistently ranks at or near the top in customer satisfaction surveys in the tech world — might well turn out to be the hero in our story after all.”
“Why? Just recently came word from the U.S. Patent Office that Apple has applied for a new patent. In its application, Apple confirms that there is a ‘serious problem’ with iPod theft and that iPod owners have been seriously injured or even murdered for their iPods. And the company has proposed an ingenious solution to the problem: essentially, you can’t recharge the iPod or the new iPhone if you can’t prove the device is yours when you hook it up to iTunes,” Hansen reports.
It was certainly refreshing that they mentioned Apple might be the hero of this story. They are <gush>.
Another drop in stock.
If any company does anyting about it – it will be Apple.
As mentioned if any company does anything to flag stolen ipods it will be Apple. Sure the company does not engage itself to track down the missing or stolen ipods due to legal issues. The dateline NBC segment was very informative. It just proves that the customer expectation bar has been set so high by Apple that the customers do expect that the company help them re-unite with their missing or stolen ipods. Which other company can you expect so much from? Maybe there are some. But I believe Apple will revolutionize the end user experience to find a lost or stolen ipod. I am so sure that the technology is there. It is very flattering for a company to have a customer base that can trust a manufacturer so much because eventually their voices, concerns and feedbacks are heard and answered in a proactive manner even though its in a silent way.
A friend’s wife left her wedding ring on a sink at the local “Y” and, of course, it wasn’t there when she returned. Now, why won’t Zales help her locate it?
A business associate had his Camry stolen recently on a trip to Tucson, AZ. Why won’t Toyota help him recover it?
My sister lost her virginity about 20 years ago. Who’s going to get THAT back for her?
The NBC segment portrayed Apple as unwilling to help it’s loyal customers in return.
How hard can it be to look up a serial number and match it with a new address?
Apple should do something about it pronto instead of being concerned about losing sales to those loyal customers that are forced to repurchase new ipods to replace their stolen ones only because Apple won’t help just a little.
The only reason they are now indirectly addressing the issue with a patent is because the public is now aware that Apple denies help to those in need when it would be little effort on their part.
It is the right thing to do.
Thank you NBC for shedding light on Apple’s allegiance.
I don’t want patents, I want action!
Obvious solution: Just buy Zune
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(I just filed a patent application before posting this. I will become rich!)
This hits close to home
we have lived in Mexico for 12 years (and love it)
Our 1st taste of crime was last week, when our 30gb was stolen from our car, in our drive way. in a gated community
(now I have more reason for an iPhone)
What, we’ve run out of child molesters?
If that’s your first taste of crime in Mexico, you must stay in doors all day, every single day. I lived in Mexico for one year. I was robbed 5 times, had my car SEIZED by the police with no indication as to why, and NEVER got it back. The entire government from top to bottom is the most corrupt I’ve ever experienced and that includes THE FORMER SOVIET UNION!
@theloniousmac: did Hansen discover this “problem” when ones of his predators showed up with a stolen iPod full of Liddy pr0n?
Oh yeah, this is so very real because most stolen ipods are just left on a bench or in a street. I would suspect more are stolen by carelessness or pickpockets. I mean really……let’s say instead of finding an ipod on the sidewalk you find an ice crisp $100 bill. Are you seriously gonna go looking for the owner of that $100 bill? Most people would call that a lucky day.
On another note, wouldn’t be fun if Dateline MSNBC’s Chris Hansen “To Catch a Predator” caught Ballmer?
no wonder crime in Mexico is so low, all the criminals are in the US.
More utter nonsense. Boy, people have too much time on their hands these days. Apple will not ever have such a solution. Dateline are morons.
Dateline has always been about soliciting crime where there wouldn’t have been any if they hadn’t solicited it. I believe it’s called entrapment.
Dateline did a superb job in their investigation. Even after Apple declined to help in the investigation, Dateline did their homework and raised some good questions. They criticized Apple where they deserved it, and even dug up some reasons (with no help from Apple) to give them praise.
I can understand Apple’s desire to not get bogged down in legal headaches, to NOT spend ANY time in court regarding responsibility or “who really owns an iPod” legal hassle.
But Apple does need to come up with a solution to help their customers. After all, they made Apple the success they are today.
Oh, and I think they should hang iPod thefts by their ears.
BTW – If you do a Google search for “Dateline iPod,” MacDailyNews is the third item listed.
Boy, that’s fast Google!
Another question, will Apple be as helpful (or not helpful) if your Mac laptop gets stolen? Will they record a laptop serial number as stolen, or if stolen laptop is turned in for repair, will Apple repair it and return it to the thief?
I’m asking because I don’t know the answer.
BTW 2 – I had my kids sit down and watch the Dateline show to show them just how easily their iPods can be stolen.
To the “theloniousMac,”
I wish.
1. The iPods offered up for theft had been modified to send registration info to the security company featured in the story. So NBC new that every one of those “registrations” was for a stolen iPod. How is Apple supposed to know when a new, previously unregistered, iPod is stolen property?
2. Even with this info NBC was able to track little more than half of the iPods stolen.
3. One chick who “stole” an iPod actually picked up a bag left on top of what looked to me as a trash receptacle on the street.
4. Ditto the a new iPod in box laying on an empty Mall bench. These last two seem a little much like entrapment. Yeah, maybe the Mall guy should gone to the Mall lost and found, but frankly, I wouldn’t even know where the L&F department (if there is one) is in the local mall I’ve gone to for the past 20 years.
5. Some of the other techniques for retrieving stolen gadgets (like Lo Jack for laptops) which they implied Apple should do are 3rd party commercial products that people pay for. Not exactly fair.
6. The guy with the Lost iPod web site came off as a real weeny.
I still think it was an interesting show, even if flawed. Also, if you have the original packaging and serial number it would be nice if you could report this to Apple to go on a watch list. They could conceivably alert authorities if someone tries to set up a new iTunes account that uses an iPod on the list. Something like that could be at least semi-automated. None the less, the NBC iPods were all set up for theft while in their original packaging, so Apple would have no way of knowing they were stolen when registered, and the victim would not have any serial numbers to report. In the mean time I don’t ever let my iPod out of my site except at home, so until I’m burgled or held up my iPod should be safe
You missed the part where Dateline stated that most stolen iPods have already been registered by previous owners. Dateline used new iPods so they could complete their investigation using their tracking software.
“A friend’s wife left her wedding ring on a sink at the local “Y” and, of course, it wasn’t there when she returned. Now, why won’t Zales help her locate it?”
Well if Zales got a serialized diamond back, you would expect that they would help.
“Why won’t Toyota help him recover it?”
If somebody brought it in to a Toyota dealer for service, you’d hope they would. if it had an onstar type system and the new “owner” signed up for sevice, you’d doubly hope they would help.
The story makes quite a lot of assumptions, including it’s portrayal of thieves targeting the iPod. Personally, my thought is if you’ve lost your iPod, it wasn’t stolen. It was lost. That’s not to say that its morally wrong for someone to just pick it up and keep it, I just feel its very different than say the kids in Berkeley who took the iPods out of cars. That’s theft, and iPod sitting on a random bench with no obvious owner is a lost.
Additionally, they assume that everyone who uses an iPod will (1) need to install a new copy of iTunes; (2) will eventually want to purchase something thru iTunes; and (3) that original owners will have maintained the serial number of their iPods.
So many people own or have previously owned an iPod that I’d state there’s probably a notable percentage of users who never run a software install disk from Apple. Myself included. I own five iPods, and have purchased others as gifts and such. I’ve never bothered with the iPod CD.
Quite a few of the people I’ve purchased iPods for have never purchased anything through Apple. I don’t know why, I find iTunes Store essential. But these individuals (friends) just convert their music and never even browse the store. A few have gotten to it years later.
Now here’s the most assumptive piece of information is that (a) most people keep track of the serial number of their device, and (b) that Apple could assist you because of that. I think I’m better than average at keeping up with serial numbers, and I only maintain serial numbers for 2 or 3 of my iPods. The ones that are 40GB or higher, and my original iPod nano. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I have a second iPod nano that I use more frequently, and other devices that are not even registered.
I see the serial number when I plug the device into my computer, and that’s it. I could and should store all the serial numbers, but I just don’t.
Additionally, there is the assumption that Apple could locate unregistered iPods by scanning the user’s computer for other identifying information—HELLO massive privacy violations. And while people might let Dateline NBC get away with those violations, I trust Apple would be raked over the coals for them.
I love Apple, but I’d be far more hesitant to purchase Apple products if they were participating in actively tracking the device. That type of re-purposing of private data is just a slippery slope. That said, if someone other than Apple created a service, and people wanted to separately register for it, than that could be of benefit to those who more willingly give up their privacy for security (which is unfortunately a vast number of Americans).
“How is Apple supposed to know when a new, previously unregistered, iPod is stolen property?”
Add a “report iPod as stolen” menu item to iTunes.
“2. Even with this info NBC was able to track little more than half of the iPods stolen.”
Better than none, if it were common knowledge that Apple was tracking iPods, that would severely curtail the market for stolen ones.
“4. Ditto the a new iPod in box laying on an empty Mall bench. “
Sure, you see an iPod on a park bench, to you think to yourself, “Somebody forgot their brand new iPod, it’s an expensive item, probably the owner will be back, I’ll just leave it there, or take it to the local cops”, or “Cool, a free iPod, I’ll take it”
“These last two seem a little much like entrapment.”
That only applies to much more active enticement to commit a crime, not to just leaving a piece of properly lying around. Clearly these people were predisposed to stealing things
“I wouldn’t even know where the L&F department (if there is one)”
So give it to a security guard, how hard is that? Sounds like you’re trying to justify why you’d steal an iPod.
“Not exactly fair.”
Well Apple could do it so easily with very little overhead.
“They could conceivably alert authorities if someone tries to set up a new iTunes account that uses an iPod on the list. Something like that could be at least semi-automated.”
Or almost completely automated, at least the reporting of the loss and the detecting of the re-use of a stolen iPod, and the disabling of that iPod.
“None the less, the NBC iPods were all set up for theft while in their original packaging,”
They only needed to do this because they couldn’t access Apple’s database. if they could have, they could have used old iPods.
“So Apple would have no way of knowing they were stolen when registered, and the victim would not have any serial numbers to report.”
Except iTunes knows this, so automating that piece is trivial.
“burgled or held up my iPod should be safe””
And in that case, you’d really like it if Apple could help track the perp.
In all reality the best value of a tracking system is to destroy the market for stolen iPods which would stop the crime happening in the first place.
Sorry for the dual post, but I’ve just been thinking about this even more, and thinking what would need to happen for Apple to track the device. Technically speaking, Apple would need to be scanning every computer that plugs in a device or always sending data back to Apple every time your iPod is plugged into your computer.
Let’s not forget, the Dateline segment proved that a “known” stolen device could be track if the ‘thief’ registered the product after the fact. Now, I may register a brand new product when prompted, but why would I register a used product, regardless if I planned to use the iTunes Store or not.
So even though the device has the serial number and probably the original owners name embedded in the software; I’m not providing Apple any of that information when I go to purchase an iTunes track or just plug my iPod into my computer.
For Apple to get that information, the device would NOT only have to be registered as stolen (maybe to the local police to prevent tons of false claims), but once Apple has/had a flag on a stolen device, it would have to actively scan for where that device is or the device would need to call home. Either method, I’m opposed to. My trust in Apple, is that they will never actively be in my machine without my permission; and that besides from purchasing history or tracking clicks on their website or at the iTS that they will not track or collect information on my usage patterns without my explicit permission, each time.
I don’t want Apple to know if I plug my iPod in once a month or every day. I don’t want them to know that I’m looking at the new Kelly Clarkson, even if I’m purchasing the latest Interpol. I don’t care that they know that someone click on both those items, I just don’t want my name associated with it. Now, I do want them to be able to tell me if I already purchased a song or album, so I’m willing to give up some privacy for purchasing history.
But this article and the individuals in it, act as if every time you plug-in your iPod information is being transmitted to Apple. It also assumes that what could be possible at registration time, is possible all the time. Yes, I’ll transmit information to Apple at registration, but how many devices lost in their original packaging do people have logged serial numbers for—unless they’ve purchased and registered AppleCare for the device at the store, instead of at home.
This article just irks me. Not to mention, my original point was also proven only 12 out of 20 people registered their iPod, and these were brand new devices. And a number of them registered the device because they believed the item to be a legal gift. Let’s forget the stupid teens and college girl who knowingly registered a stolen device—idiots.And of course you notice that no one read the terms of service. Because, I’d be hesitant to agree to provide data to Dateline NBC when registering my newly stolen iPod.
Pah!
You don’t need all this electronic tracking, all you need is one of these:
http://hideapod.com/
and your iPod will NEVER get stolen!
I think people should just be more careful and take better care of their iPods. When you buy a product, it becomes *your* responsibility, in that it is *your* product.
And yes, the guy that started the stolen iPod website not only has too much time on his hands, but he’s also a real shithead. He seems to think there is a certain entitlement owed him by Apple. I hope someone steals his car, and maybe his girlfriend.
I posted the following to an article at Slashdot last Friday, and somewhere else about a year ago:
To catch an iPod or iPhone thief (and thereby prevent many thefts, if this is made well known), I think Apple should do this: Modify iTunes so that it sends to Apple the s/n of any connected iPod or iPhone. If stolen, the victim sends Apple a copy of the police report. Apple then puts that s/n on its watch list, and the next time the stolen iWhatever announces itself, Apple sends the IP# of the machine it is connected to to the police dept where the report was made. It may cost Apple an employee or two to handle this but the PR it would generate I think would be worth it. It may even recover the iPod that was snatched from the resident teen here.
Apple should get itunes to track serial numbers the people inform feds to get the person himself and if the ipod was damaged they pay for it.Nice and clear.
I don’t think it is Apple’s responsibility… especially not for free… to serve as our iPod nanny. We know what we spent on the device and therefore we have to treat it with the respect that is deserves. These are the hottest gadgets out there, walking away from one is like leaving cash setting out for the taking. Americans need to stop thinking everyone else is supposed to take care of them. Wake up and be responsible!
Solution is easy:
every time you plug-in iPod, serial and ip is senyt to Apple, of course you have to agree to that when buying/installing, this would make tracking easy, period.
And I don’t have anything against sending my info to Apple, after all it;s all for my own good. Some people will protest claiming their privacy is compromised, but who are they, do they really think someone is out to get them?
Some people are more careful with their stuff, why should they subsidize people who aren’t as careful? Especially as rich people tend to be less careful with playthings so poor people will subsidize them.
If a stolen item is more likely to be returned people will take less care of them and more will be stolen. People make risk assessments all the time, it’s human nature and there is no changing it.
It’s fascinating how people are willing to give up their freedom so easily in ‘the land of the free’, all so they can take less care of an at best extremely peripheral part of life. It’s like socialism in a different guise, collective responsibility replacing individual responsibility, the company will look out for me.
This government is bad/business is good mentality is wrong but getting righter all the time as government and business converge. The political system in western ‘democracies’ is rapidly approaching corporatism – look it up.
A bit off topic but that was some of the worst writing I’ve ever seen in a “news” segment. What are they teaching people in school now? Self-esteem?
No way would I allow my personal informatin to be transmitted all the time to someone. Apple would never do it because Apple is not Sony and is not Microsoft.
As for people who say its OK to take Lost iPods, sorry that isn’t so. if it isn’t yours, don’t take it. BTW, that’s the same as money. I thought the kids were a good example of some is what is wrong in the world, “someone took mine so I am going to take someone else.” Reminds me of a 5 year old – “he hit me first.”
The really scary part is in 20 to 30 years these kids could be running our companies – Enron anyone?
No way would I allow my personal informatin to be transmitted all the time to someone. Apple would never do it because Apple is not Sony and is not Microsoft.
As for people who say its OK to take Lost iPods, sorry that isn’t so. if it isn’t yours, don’t take it. BTW, that’s the same as money. I thought the kids were a good example of some is what is wrong in the world, “someone took mine so I am going to take someone else.” Reminds me of a 5 year old – “he hit me first.”
The really scary part is in 20 to 30 years these kids could be running our companies – Enron anyone?
No way would I allow my personal informatin to be transmitted all the time to someone. Apple would never do it because Apple is not Sony and is not Microsoft.
As for people who say its OK to take Lost iPods, sorry that isn’t so. if it isn’t yours, don’t take it. BTW, that’s the same as money. I thought the kids were a good example of some is what is wrong in the world, “someone took mine so I am going to take someone else.” Reminds me of a 5 year old – “he hit me first.”
The really scary part is in 20 to 30 years these kids could be running our companies – Enron anyone?
No way would I allow my personal informatin to be transmitted all the time to someone. Apple would never do it because Apple is not Sony and is not Microsoft.
As for people who say its OK to take Lost iPods, sorry that isn’t so. if it isn’t yours, don’t take it. BTW, that’s the same as money. I thought the kids were a good example of some is what is wrong in the world, “someone took mine so I am going to take someone else.” Reminds me of a 5 year old – “he hit me first.”
The really scary part is in 20 to 30 years these kids could be running our companies – Enron anyone?
Serial number is easy.
When I buy an iPod, I register it with Apple. Apple maintains a list, associated with my .Mac account, of all the serial numbers of iPods I’ve bought. I don’t have to keep track of anything!
now I only wish I could find a ‘lost’ iPod on some bench…it would never be found…it’s a cruel world.
Who cars if some idiot lost their ipod. I lost my camera .. I demand Sony do something about it! people are so f’ing dumb.
“Better than none, if it were common knowledge that Apple was tracking iPods, that would severely curtail the market for stolen ones.”
no, in a week, there would be a work around and thieves/hackers would be right back where they started….
MW: “been” there done that.
I watched the show last night and was thinking about the iPod stolen from my grandson all the while. Apple has the information already. That information ought to be available to the registered owner, or for the owner’s use in recovering a stolen device, if only via a subpoena. Getting your tunes to your iPod is difficult without iTunes, beyond the skills of most casual thieves.
a) knowing they are traceable would seriously reduce the theft
b) knowing of the tracking would somewhat reduce the use of iTunes
An acceptable trade-off, in my view. Until someone comes out with a “uTunes” hack that does most of what iTunes does – without the external linking.
DLMeyer – the Voice of G.L.Horton’s Stage Page Pod Cast – now discussing the ICWP Retreat
If you actually watched the show last night, you would have seen that at one of the NYC stores, an Apple Genius did look up the registration info on an iPod and it was returned to the rightful owner.
Is it Apple’s responsibility? Not really. They aren’t law enforcement after all. But if they start requiring activation of iPods (like what they’re already doing now with iPhones) it would greatly reduce the amount of thefts.
If an iPhone is stolen it can be deactivated, and it becomes nothing more than a $500 brick, so there is no real point in stealing one. Apple will likely do something similar with the iPod soon based on the patent they’ve applied for.
Hmmmm, some good points and some weird ones here.
But remember, its a lot harder than it looks. I sell my iPod and then claim its stolen. Who is right? I do think that there is something that Apple or an outside agency can do, BUT ONLY if the original owner agrees in writing. PERIOD.
As mentioned above, its a slippery slope when a company starts prying into your personal business. Who you give, buy for, etc a piece of equipment is YOUR business not someone who wants to pry.
And with datelines thing, if I found a twenty dollar bill on the bench, its mine. Sorry but unless you have the serial number on the bill, you cannot prove its yours. And for lost and found, how do I know that they are honest. They get the handbag, lose the iPod, and return the other contents. I assume that there is no other identifing info in the bag so that people who find the left bags could return them. — Actually that would be an interesting test. Leave your info in the bag, leave it and see who returns the iPod. Interesting thought.
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en
My MacBook was stolen. I informed Apple of the theft and was given an incident number which then could be used by any insurance company to verify that the theft had been reported. It also could be used by any police department to subpoena Apple’s records to see if their had been any later registration of the machine.
Dateline’s piece could almost be seen as a hit piece, really.
The scenario they set up–theft of boxed iPods where the victim has a record of the serial number–can’t represent more than a tenth of a percentage of iPod thefts. Most often the iPod stolen is an iPod someone uses and has left out in the open, so all the registration crap Dateline did goes out the window. What Dateline would like Apple to do is surruptitiously register iPods; imagine the privacy objections that would cause.
Also, the piece itself shows why Apple should never, never, never give out registration info except when subpoenaed by a law enforcement agency–imagine if any schmuck could call Apple and get name and address info for who has “their” iPod.
Such as someone going over and beating the crap out of whoever they think stole their iPod.
Or someone getting shot when trying to confront the person they think stole their iPod.
Or someone who received an iPod as a gift or bought an iPod on ebay or craigslist finding themselves with a group of guys with baseball bats at their front door.
That kinda stuff.
Even the “I found this iPod” stuff was complete crap. Imagine if Joe Stalker saw a girl he liked at the gym, took her iPod, and then ran to the Apple store saying, “I found this lost iPod. Can I have the name and address of the person it belongs to so I can return it? I’d really like to return the iPod at 3 a.m. by crawling in this girl’s back window. I swear all I want to do is return the iPod.”
Why is it the maunfacturer’s responsibilty to help you keep track of your shit? Lost is lost, through your own carelessness. If you don’t care enough to look after it why should the manufacturer?
Stolen from a vehicle? Same deal. Don’t leave it out where it can be seen.
Stolen from you physically? Notify police if you feel the need and can provide info on the thief. Count yourself lucky if all they do is take the iPod.
Do we ask wallet makers to find our wallets? No matter how we lose them?
Just because the possibilty exists of tracking the item does not mean it should be required of the manufacturer.
Best suggestion in this forum has been offering tracking of all products thru AppleCare. Optional coverage, for a fee, just like insurance.
Apple already has policies in place for what to do when an iPod is reported as stolen. When you buy an iPod from an Apple store, they register it for you on the spot. Your name is in their system, associated with your iPod’s serial number.
If your iPod gets stolen, call Apple technical support immediately and report it. They will flag it as stolen in their system. In the future, if anybody calls in to technical support with that serial number, that technician’s next call is to Apple security.
It’s a long shot, but it’s further than they really have to go on behalf of a stolen iPod. Obviously, the best measure is to use your brain to prevent it getting stolen in the first place. Don’t leave it in your car, and avoid using in places where you’re likely to get mugged for it.
Gotta love the standard sense of entitlement held by the people of this country. “I was a dumbass and left my iPod on the top of the car, and somebody stole it and ZOMG! APPLE MUST RECOVER IT FOR ME OR THEY ARE A HORRIBLE, EVIL COMPANY!”
Hell, let’s just embed RFID chips in everything, including Randian’s friend’s wife’s new ring, so that they cease functioning (bling off?) if not within 2 meters of the owner, who has an implanted RFID transceiver that talks to the item. That’ll fix it!
I saw a blip of this last night, and my thought was, “Geez, Dateline’s scraping the barrell now.” Total non-news just glomming on the iPod phenomenon, and this whole “To Catch an X” thing is starting to sound like something Geraldo Rivera would do. Whatever.
And no MDN readers are wonderinging why MS-NBC, that’s MICROSOFT-NBC if you didn’t catch that, decided to bash Apple?
What about all the other dozen’s of MP3 players, or the wedding ring noted above, or the car, anyone’s sister’s virginity?
Sheesh, people, get a clue.
It served Apple’s marketing purpose that iPods were being stolen…
…but now it’s gotten out of hand, so Apple devises a new more secure iPod for us to buy.
BUT it doesn’t cover the zillions already out there.
But Apple does INDEED track each iPod and the machine it’s put on by hardware serial number and MAC Address.
So if you registered your Apple hardware, it’s possible to track it if it appears online.
Famous Celebs had their hardware recovered.
I agree with everyone who says to take responsibility for your possesions. It is NO one else’s responsibility. Take out insurance for crying out loud. This sense of entitlement that is so pervasive in America is pathetic. I get a good dose of it weekly from my students who think that because they have company they don’t have to come to school or that it is the instructors’ responsibility to make sure they receive their assignments when they don’t ask for them. Then toss out attitude because THEY didn’t act like an adult and ask for it. You lost it – you just friggin’ lost it. You get it back -Cool. You don’t – Tough. Take care of your things. Friggin’ babies. It’s a thingie to play music on. Don’t get me wrong here. I love my old iPod and use it daily. And if my iPod was stolen or I lost it – I’d be bummed. Then you know what I would do? BUY ANOTHER ONE. You know what I would NOT do? COMPLAIN ABOUT APPLE NOT FINDING IT FOR ME. Look after your own stuff folks. Friggin’ babies. Grow the f**k up. Quit smokin crack or whatever it is that you did to get the wonderful little device to go away.
Oops.Did I get on soap box there? If Apple has some way to find a stolen device and are willing to do it. Cool. If not – cool.
Computers and iPods – keep current backups of info, get insurance, report the theft to the police, get your insurance check, reinstall your info. Am I being too old fashioned here?
MD – “press” as in Dateline : Our country has a list of very SERIOUS ills and they focus on iPod theft? It slight of hand folks. “Look over here.” Not where the real mess is happening.
…reinstall your info on your NEW computer or iPod…
1st off, they abandoned most of the ipod on the show. 2ndly, they used images of the ipod most likely without apples permission. 3rdly, it’s not apples responsibility to track down ipod, it’s the owners responsibility to keep track of their own property. chris hansen should keep to catching myspace and yahoo chat predators.
Where is my iPaaaaaad? The way that guy talks is just too funny.
Man, this idea stinks like Microsoft. I don’t want my iPod calling home to see if it’s okay to start playing. I have enough problems re-registering stuff after a HD crash or motherboard failure — which happens too damn much with my Mac machines. Oh, yeah, and hoping I have an iTunes authorization left for a repaired machine because I can only re-set to zero once a year.
MW: trouble Ha! Now that’s creepy.
I didn’t see the piece, but a coworker of mine did, and according to him, they simply left the iPods in a public location, such as on a park bench.
That isn’t theft–It’s finding. If I see an iPod, sitting abandoned on a park bench, and no one is around to claim it, you better believe I’m going to take it.
misanthrope, if you contact iTunes Customer Support they will happily de-register all your Macs so you can start again.
“always sending data back to Apple every time your iPod is plugged into your computer.”
No, only the first time, like today.
“I’m not providing Apple any of that information when I go to purchase an iTunes track or just plug my iPod into my computer”
If you say so, but what makes you different from everybody else in the world?
“I don’t want them to know that I’m looking at the new Kelly Clarkson, even if I’m purchasing the latest Interpol.”
because now when you browse the iTMS store and buy the song they don’t know?
“Americans need to stop thinking everyone else is supposed to take care of them. Wake up and be responsible!”
Quite right. When police stop a car they should never check the license plate thru their computer to see if it’s stolen because that’s really your problem.
“If a stolen item is more likely to be returned people will take less care of them and more will be stolen”
It’s not about getting your iPod back, that may never happen. it’s about killing the market for stolen iPods because people who steal or buy stolen ones know they turn into iBricks the first time you hook them to a PC and connect to iTMS. Just how much crack are they going to get for your useless, non resellable iPod.
“no, in a week, there would be a work around”
Maybe, but it will stop the casual thief, and since the only purpose of such a hack is to enable criminal behavior, the hacker would be up for one count of conspiracy to commit larceny for every iPod found with his software in.
“Actually that would be an interesting test. Leave your info in the bag, leave it and see who returns the iPod. Interesting thought.”
The law is very clear, if you find anything, even a $20 bill, even a nickel and know who the owner is, you must leave it alone or return it rather then take it for your own use. You’re just trying to justify being a thief.
“APPLE MUST RECOVER IT FOR ME OR THEY ARE A HORRIBLE, EVIL COMPANY!”
I don’t think any-one’s saying that. They’re saying that Apple keeps all this information anyway, so it would be so easy for them to help out in this situation and/or modify the product to make it less attractive to thieves. You know, how car makers started installing door locks, then making those locks less easy to jimmy and adding alarm systems and immobilizers over time as standard features to make it harder for people to steal their customer’s cars and get away with it, then adding things like OnStar.
Nobody expects Apple to do this, but it sure would be nice if rather than knowing they’re going to make another iPod sale to you and laughing all the way to the bank, they did something to make your iPod less desirable to thieves.
“Also, the piece itself shows why Apple should never, never, never give out registration info except when subpoenaed by a law enforcement agency”
No problem, other than remotely disabling the stolen iPod, Apple shouldn’t take any action without a law enforcement agency request, which ultimately begins with a verified request from somebody making a statement to police that they’re the legitimate owner and their iPod has been stolen.
“Take care of your things. Friggin’ babies.”
That’s right, when I’m held up a t gunpoint, I just lost it, likewise when somebody smashes into my car and steals it, I just lost it, likewise when they burglarize my house I’m just being careless. Thanks for clarifying that all crime in society is the victim’s fault.
What are your views on murder and rape? Clearly the victims were asking for it, or just needed to be more careful. No need to investigate more than that.
“That isn’t theft–It’s finding. If I see an iPod, sitting abandoned on a park bench, and no one is around to claim it, you better believe I’m going to take it.”
See that just makes you a thief. I’m going to leave it there figuring it won’t take long for the real owner to realize they’ve lost their package and retrace their route.
How do you feel when you see cars that you know are not yours parked by the side of a street? They could have been abandoned you know…
It would be great for Apple to please the customers but why would they?! Sayan ipod gets stolen what stops half those people from buying a new one and apple raking in the profit for it? Apple wont do anything I got my ipod stolen a year ago and no one did anything. I dont think its gonna change. So good luck
A business associate had his Camry stolen recently on a trip to Tucson, AZ. Why won’t Toyota help him recover it?
GM can track down stolen vehicles with OnStar. Can’t best-selling Toyota do the same?
As for the iPod, IMO Apple really should have iTunes check the ID of any iPod plugged into it. If an iPod is known as stolen, iTunes should lock the iPod down, forcing a trip to an Apple Store for service (and hopefully arrest).
Ohhh better yet, offer the thief a certificate for, say, 100 free iTunes songs. They just have to enter in their home address or bring the iPod to an Apple Store. Bust them when they take the bait.
It wouldn’t be perfect but it’d be a start.