Stolen iPhone - Criminals have full control and Apple cannot help!

[Matthew.H]

But it is still a balance between security and convenience — there will be “winners” and “losers”.

If better security comes at the cost of some users being permanently being locked out because they can't get past a second layer to reset their password then so be it. It's the users responsibility to keep track of their account passwords. If you rarely use some accounts write the passwords down in a notebook and keep it in a safe place.
Keeping them written down in a digital format would be less secure as you could be hacked. Written down on paper is lower risk unless someone breaks into your home to steal your passwords which is rather unlikely.

Apple could have a system in place where you could reset the password with photo ID in an Apple Store if you can't get past the stronger security.

 

[I7guy]

Wait till a government issued iphone with sensitive and confidential information in it get's stolen in the same manner, then we will see Apple act because they most certainly will not take the chance of government bosses saying they will no longer use iphones due to Apple's inability to lock down the iphone when it is reported stolen.

Wont happen, those phones will have an MDM.

 

[I7guy]

If better security comes at the cost of some users being permanently being locked out because they can't get past a second layer to reset their password then so be it. It's the users responsibility to keep track of their account passwords. If you rarely use some accounts write the passwords down in a notebook and keep it in a safe place.
Keeping them written down in a digital format would be less secure as you could be hacked. Written down on paper is lower risk unless someone breaks into your home to steal your passwords which is rather unlikely.

Apple could have a system in place where you could reset the password with photo ID in an Apple Store if you can't get past the stronger security.

And how does Apple determine the difference between a genuine robbery and an insurance scam?

 

[Matthew.H]

And how does Apple determine the difference between a genuine robbery and an insurance scam?

In the UK the customer could provide a crime reference number.

 

[I7guy]

In the UK the customer could provide a crime reference number.

So for an insurance scam, person could falsely report a robbery and then go to apple and then scam the insurance company. My point is that trying to solve one issue by creating other issues that could ultimately be worse in nature has to be carefully thought out. I don't think those who want to perpetuate crime on others really care to follow the rules.

 

[NDPTAL85]

For the people who have had their iPhones stolen and their iCloud accounts hijacked, I have a question: Did any of you have more than one Apple product? (AirPods and Apple Watches don't count) Was the iPhone your only Apple device or did you also have iPads and Macs logged into the same iCloud account? I'm trying to figure out if Apple's iCloud Two-Factor Authentication which sends a six-digit code to your other logged in devices would prevent your iCloud account from getting hijacked.

 

[Puonti]

I'm not one of those people, but a problem with the 2FA is that the code is sent to all of your trusted devices - including the stolen iPhone.

Also I'm not sure if the 2FA is even used when an Apple ID password is changed through one of your trusted devices (such as a stolen iPhone).

 

[Fred Zed]

Looks like the OP's message got across to the UK Gov funded news website the BBC

Mobile fraud: Thieves 'shoulder surfing' victims to steal phones

Criminals are exploiting our frequent use of banking apps on mobile phones, a senior fraud officer warns.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[HDFan]

Identity Theft insurance is available. It may not restore access to your iCloud accounts, but it can reimburse you for financial losses.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Looks like the OP's message got across to the UK Gov funded news website the BBC

Mobile fraud: Thieves 'shoulder surfing' victims to steal phones

Criminals are exploiting our frequent use of banking apps on mobile phones, a senior fraud officer warns.

www.bbc.co.uk

I saw a segment on this on the news this morning and thankfully he got all his money back. So worrying thieves can access such information with just a passcode, although I can't get into my banking app without a password or FaceID thankfully.

There will be pressure on tech companies now to review their security and rightly so. I don't think not having banking apps on our phones is the answer and disabling password prompt software. For me, that is accepting thieves are going to steal our devices. Phone manufacturers need to improve and this exposure will force a solution I hope.

 

[iphonehype]

Shocked to be reading this, Apple have really really messed this up. Apple quick at patching things, but I guess this is not a patch its by design.

I've just turned on Screen Time set a different code and turned on don't allow on Account Changes. I suggest everyone to do this asap.

 

[Puonti]

I've just turned on Screen Time set a different code and turned on don't allow on Account Changes. I suggest everyone to do this asap.

If the thief has your phone's passcode they can remove the Screen Time code, so this is not a solution.

 

[iphonehype]

If the thief has your phone's passcode they can remove the Screen Time code, so this is not a solution.

hm. true. I've just created an alpha numeric pw.

 

[dk001]

Shocked to be reading this, Apple have really really messed this up. Apple quick at patching things, but I guess this is not a patch its by design.

I've just turned on Screen Time set a different code and turned on don't allow on Account Changes. I suggest everyone to do this asap.

A few of us have directly reached out to Apple and the responses have pretty much been “this is not an issue”.
Unforeseen (likely) gap in the design.

Here’s to hoping Apple will address this.

 

[iphonehype]

A few of us have directly reached out to Apple and the responses have pretty much been “this is not an issue”.
Unforeseen (likely) gap in the design.

Here’s to hoping Apple will address this.

I bet iOS 17 will redesign the way this is done

 

[dk001]

I bet iOS 17 will redesign the way this is done

We all hope!

 

[dk001]

On a separate note; I do odd browsing to see what is out there about the use of FaceID and passcodes and issues that happen.

This headline popped up (from Feb 20203 NYC).

Please Switch Off Your Face ID Before Entering the Bar — NYC Nightlife Advice

New York City officials are advising patrons of Hell’s Kitchen’s gay bars and clubs to switch off the Face ID on their phones.

w42st.com

 

[arian71]

Sadly today thieves on a motorbike managed to grab my iPhone of my hand while i was on lunch somewhere 5 mins from Greenwich train station ..😔
the phone was 30 seconds screen time out, passcode and face ID . 3 hours later came home and from my macbook and located the phone on find my device app somewhere NW6 london near Kilburn high road
I changed Apple ID password set on lock mode and erase is pending as the iphone is offline. While on the chat with Apple the agent said to remove it from the account as but read here removing the phone will not be shown on find my device
police came quick and filed a report but they said sadly ( as per usual) CCTV footage was blocked from a van to recognise the bike plate registration 😏
and precisely my phone was stolen at the gates of Greenwich Centre Business Park 5 mins from train station , sure there are a lot of CCTVs
I did manage to cancel bank cards , what else should I do?
Beware people living in London while out using your iphones

 

[TechnoMonk]

Sadly today thieves on a motorbike managed to grab my iPhone of my hand while i was on lunch somewhere 5 mins from Greenwich train station ..😔
the phone was 30 seconds screen time out, passcode and face ID . 3 hours later came home and from my macbook and located the phone on find my device app somewhere NW6 london near Kilburn high road
I changed Apple ID password set on lock mode and erase is pending as the iphone is offline. While on the chat with Apple the agent said to remove it from the account as but read here removing the phone will not be shown on find my device
police came quick and filed a report but they said sadly ( as per usual) CCTV footage was blocked from a van to recognise the bike plate registration 😏
and precisely my phone was stolen at the gates of Greenwich Centre Business Park 5 mins from train station , sure there are a lot of CCTVs
I did manage to cancel bank cards , what else should I do?
Beware people living in London while out using your iphones

Seems to me like London has big Law and Order problem.

 

[Fred Zed]

Seems to me like London has big Law and Order problem.

Yep. It only applies to law abiding citizens. 😓

 

[HarryMudd]

Sadly today thieves on a motorbike managed to grab my iPhone of my hand while i was on lunch somewhere 5 mins from Greenwich train station ..😔
the phone was 30 seconds screen time out, passcode and face ID . 3 hours later came home and from my macbook and located the phone on find my device app somewhere NW6 london near Kilburn high road
I changed Apple ID password set on lock mode and erase is pending as the iphone is offline. While on the chat with Apple the agent said to remove it from the account as but read here removing the phone will not be shown on find my device
police came quick and filed a report but they said sadly ( as per usual) CCTV footage was blocked from a van to recognise the bike plate registration 😏
and precisely my phone was stolen at the gates of Greenwich Centre Business Park 5 mins from train station , sure there are a lot of CCTVs
I did manage to cancel bank cards , what else should I do?
Beware people living in London while out using your iphones

I’m sorry this happened to you. I’ve never had a phone stolen but I have lost one and it’s a terrible feeling. If you have AppleCare you need to leave find my on if you wish to file a claim. You might want to check and see what the current rules are for that.

It sounds like you may have gotten off much more lightly than the original poster to this thread. Still it’s a violation of your person and a very uncomfortable feeling.

 

[arian71]

Seems to me like London has big Law and Order problem.

Yes

I’m sorry this happened to you. I’ve never had a phone stolen but I have lost one and it’s a terrible feeling. If you have AppleCare you need to leave find my on if you wish to file a claim. You might want to check and see what the current rules are for that.

It sounds like you may have gotten off much more lightly than the original poster to this thread. Still it’s a violation of your person and a very uncomfortable feeling.

it is uncomfortable , first time personally happened to me but what worries me is the other day while goin to work in the morning kids on bikes smashing the windows of the cars parked and grab whatever they found on the driver's seat.
Really unsettling for people living in London , yes crime is everywhere but the last few years after the covid is gone up

 

[jaytv111]

Sadly today thieves on a motorbike managed to grab my iPhone of my hand while i was on lunch somewhere 5 mins from Greenwich train station ..😔
the phone was 30 seconds screen time out, passcode and face ID . 3 hours later came home and from my macbook and located the phone on find my device app somewhere NW6 london near Kilburn high road
I changed Apple ID password set on lock mode and erase is pending as the iphone is offline. While on the chat with Apple the agent said to remove it from the account as but read here removing the phone will not be shown on find my device
police came quick and filed a report but they said sadly ( as per usual) CCTV footage was blocked from a van to recognise the bike plate registration 😏
and precisely my phone was stolen at the gates of Greenwich Centre Business Park 5 mins from train station , sure there are a lot of CCTVs
I did manage to cancel bank cards , what else should I do?
Beware people living in London while out using your iphones

If you take it off your account you won’t get any tracking any more. You can tell your carrier to put it on the IMEI blacklist so if they try to activate it on that carrier it’s reported stolen and they refuse to activate, this doesn’t need to be on your iCloud account, but not every carrier will use the same blacklist so they could simply find another carrier to use it on.

Chances are, you will never see it again and the police won’t find it, usually it’s in another country in only hours after being stolen. So up to you to keep it on the account or get rid of it from your account. Keeping it on your account discourages them and frustrates them, but will it help you get it back, probably not.

Oh also the fun now begins when they try to text message you fake notifications from Apple about your phone being found. They link to fake sites that look like Apple, hoping you put in your ID and password and passcode, but it’s not Apple and doing so will let them unlock it and use it and sell it. Then if you don’t get phished, they resort to threats, I’ve seen them text videos of them firing guns as a threat. Awesome!

 

[arian71]

If you take it off your account you won’t get any tracking any more. You can tell your carrier to put it on the IMEI blacklist so if they try to activate it on that carrier it’s reported stolen and they refuse to activate, this doesn’t need to be on your iCloud account, but not every carrier will use the same blacklist so they could simply find another carrier to use it on.

Chances are, you will never see it again and the police won’t find it, usually it’s in another country in only hours after being stolen. So up to you to keep it on the account or get rid of it from your account. Keeping it on your account discourages them and frustrates them, but will it help you get it back, probably not.

Oh also the fun now begins when they try to text message you fake notifications from Apple about your phone being found. They link to fake sites that look like Apple, hoping you put in your ID and password and passcode, but it’s not Apple and doing so will let them unlock it and use it and sell it. Then if you don’t get phished, they resort to threats, I’ve seen them text videos of them firing guns as a threat. Awesome!

Keeping it on your account discourages them and frustrates them.. well if i cant get my phone back then why should i let them use it but then also chances are they know already my apple id email when you say they will try to send messages ?
the other thing is i transferred my number to a new sim , using another phone so i guess they cant use my number on the stolen phone is that right?
thanks for feedback

 

[jaytv111]

Keeping it on your account discourages them and frustrates them.. well if i cant get my phone back then why should i let them use it but then also chances are they know already my apple id email when you say they will try to send messages ?
the other thing is i transferred my number to a new sim , using another phone so i guess they cant use my number on the stolen phone is that right?
thanks for feedback

If you had a physical SIM in the device, I think they take the SIM out, use the ICCID number on the SIM (all SIM cards have this number to be identified when added to an account), and they get buddies working at carriers to look up the account associated with that number, they can then harass over text messages.

I assume you have a PIN set if you use a physical SIM, yes? Otherwise they don’t need to do squat, they just pop it out and get the phone number in another phone.

But if you had an eSIM only, the hilarious thing is there is no number to look up, they can’t even message their threats, unless you put a message when you enabled Lost mode including a phone number or email (People usually do this thinking an honest person will call and give your phone back). Not sure if you put a number or email to call or text.

Correct that they can’t use your number at all when you’ve transferred your SIM (physical or eSIM, doesn’t matter).