But, you and I know this isn't going to happen. Why? Because, the cell companies make a killing off of people replacing their lost and stolen phones. Why does everything have to be a cash grab? Why cant good service and quality products be the draw?
No. Instead they profit from the misfortune of people and the dishonesty of others. Because, they could turn the phone in to a lost and found or return it to a Rogers store but that brings them nothing but a clean conscience. Instead they take it to some dusty little shop to get it unlocked, then sell it for cheap. Hey, they can even turn an iphone in to an Apple store and they will "fix" it for them so they can use it again. Thanks Apple. You guys rock.
To the person who stole my phone: I hope you get a severe case of genital herpes, complicated by a severe case of syphilis. May you have gonorrhea so severe that only by peeing your pants would you dare to urinate.
Here's some reading in the meantime.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2368102,00.asp
http://iphonetheif.blogspot.com/2010/01/iphone-theif-bust.html
Here's more:
"Apple / AT&T Condone iPhone Theft?
By ThinGuy on Aug 29, 2008
Less than a week after getting my wife an iPhone 3G, it was stolen. Here's what I've learned. Neither AT&T nor Apple care that your phone was stolen. AT&T will not black list the IMEI or SIM, meaning that whoever stole the phone can go right down to AT&T and get the phone switched over to their account with ZERO questions asked.Apple will not black list the serial number and will allow it to be registered with iTunes, just by plugging it into the computer.
Even if you deactivate your phone service, the iPhone (either model) basically becomes a fully functional iPod Touch.
Condoning theft is a strong accusation, but it would be simple for either AT&T or Apple to brick the phone. Furthermore they refuse to offer insurance on the iPhone (far more expensive phones are insurable) which begs the question why? I'll tell you why, because AT&T get a new customer with the stolen phone locked into a two year contract, the theft victim has to continue paying for two years with no option but to pay full market price ($499 USD) to replace their phone AND get locked into another two year contract. Luckily you can drop the 3G data plan at will, and luckily we still have her old Motorola RAZR. Otherwise, we'd be out of luck and spending at least $150 USD on the most basic of phones.
The rotten cherry on top of this crap cake story is that I bought the phone with my Corporate American Express Card since that's the card I have on file with AT&T to pay my bill with. American Express offers a great service called Buyers Protection that covers you from damage or theft in the first 90 days. It's complimentary service available on every American Express Card...EXCEPT the Corporate Card. Nice.
I've given both Apple and AT&T a lot of my hard earned money and they flat out don't care. I honestly think "iPhone Theft" is viewed as another revenue stream for them."
http://blogs.oracle.com/ThinGuy/entry/apple_at_t_condone_iphone
Here's some more on Stolen Iphones:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bclocalnews.com/richmond_southdelta/richmondreview/news/123662889.html
Nicolette Olson contacted The Richmond Review this week, at wit’s end after learning four months ago that the iPhone4 that was stolen from her home last October, was in the hands of a manager at the Apple Store in Richmond.
Despite turning to police, which attempted to retrieve the stolen item to no avail, and pleading her case directly to Apple, she found herself no closer to reclaiming what was rightfully hers.
Olson’s roller coaster ride began during her 19-year-old son’s birthday party held at her home in October. She set down her iPhone on a tray of food she’d been carrying, then forgot about it, only to return a half hour later to find that it had disappeared.
She had her suspicions of who took the phone, along with some other missing electronics, but had no proof.
She reported the theft to Surrey RCMP and Telus, her cellphone service provider, and that seemed to be the end of the story.
That was until the afternoon of Feb. 7, when she checked her e-mail and found one message from Apple’s warranty department, indicating her phone repair was done at the Richmond store.
Puzzled, she called the store, and an employee confirmed the phone was there.
Someone had apparently brought the iPhone in because it wasn’t working, but the store didn’t check identification.
What’s more, not only was the stolen phone collected for repair, but a new iPhone was handed to the thief. No questions asked.
Olson then turned to the Richmond RCMP, but an officer who attempted to retrieve the stolen iPhone was stonewalled by the store manager who refused to turn it over.
That was four months ago, with still no progress until after she contacted The Richmond Review and fired off yet another e-mail to Apple, declaring: “It is a crime to be in possession of stolen property. Your prompt attention is much appreciated.”
She heard Friday morning from Steve Perry, senior manager of loss prevention for Apple, who assured her he would get to the bottom of the situation by Monday at the latest.
“This is the first he’s heard of it,” Olson said.
According to Olson, Perry said that Apple doesn’t check identification when a customer brings in an item, and as long as it’s under warranty, will repair and/or replace the item.
“That’s just crazy,” Olson said of Apple’s policy. Considering the amount of expensive, highly-sought-after Apple electronics that are out there, this sends the wrong message to thieves and robbers.
For Apple’s part, spokesperson Tara Hendela said: “Apple will be declining to comment on this story.”
Meanwhile, Olson had to shell out another $500 to get another iPhone, and is hoping Apple will step up and do the right thing.
The idea was brought up regarding a class action law suit against Apple and the cell companyies. Rogers, Telus. All of them. The have the capability to globally blacklist a phone's IMEI and serial but they don't. Why? Can you insure a stolen car? Of course not. So why is it so easy to re use a stole phone?
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