Apple’s fabulous iPhone used to be the number one reason crime was on the rise in New York City, but now that Apple’s added Activation Lock to iOS 7, thieves have given up their iLust and are targeting Samsung phones like never before.
Just look at the sudden change in thefts in the chart below:
According to a study on smartphone robberies in London, San Francisco and New York, Apple’s introduction of Activation Lock in iOS 7 corresponded with a decline in iPhone thefts, but also caused Samsung device thefts to skyrocket
The report shows iPhone robbers in San Francisco declined 38% while Samsung thefts increased 12% in the sixth months after activation lock was added. In New York City the picture was even worse for Samsung devices, which saw thefts increase 41% and grand larcenies increase 40%.
Thieves are only going to get more attracted to the Galaxy line up too now that Activation Lock is on by default on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, while Samsung has been slow to bend to the demands of a kill-switch from U.S. politicians and law enforcement officials. Both Google and Microsoft promised they would add kill switches to their mobile operating systems in June, and will have to implement them by July 2015 when a new California law will require all phones sold in the state to have a kill switch.
Via: Forbes
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
13 responses to “Samsung phone thefts spike after Apple adds kill switch”
Seems about right. I mean, if you can’t get your hands on an iPhone, I guess you have to settle for a Samsung device.
Pretty sure thieves don’t check to see what phone you have before they steal it. Also pretty sure that, should the ability to steal someone’s phone arise, they aren’t going to say, “Oh it’s an iPhone, I’m not going to steal it now.” Correlation does not equal causation. The more likely reason is that there are simply more Samsung phones around to be stolen than iPhones.
While it may not be *the* factor, I wouldn’t be surprized if it is *a* factor. Thieves are smart… if they can’t resell it, then why take it? If there’s no benefit to taking something, why not take something else? Opportunity is only a part of the reason things get stolen. It’s for this very reason that if there’s two houses side by side, and one had ATD, the other one gets robbed.
You don’t think a good thief sizes a victim up, follows them, sees what they got, and then steals it?
that’s the way it goes down in most cases. it’s not just smash and grab at will and “oh hey an iPhone!” goodie. No, thieves look for someone who’d it’d be easy to take their iPhone from cause they know they can sell it. But now they know they can’t so they look for nice androids instead.
How many thieves are so called “good thieves”? Not sure how you know that’s the way it goes down “in most cases”. They are stealing phones, not Breitlings. I hardly think they’d be sizing them up and tailing them for that. These are opportunistic thefts.
The phone is likely in a case. What version of iPhone is it? What version of iOS is it? Does it have kill switch enabled? Thieves won’t know and won’t check. The most likely reason iPhone theft is down is because iPhone market share is down…in the US and worldwide.
Cute! What you mean to say is that thieves don’t really care so much about Activation Lock, which pretty much locks the iPhone completely in most cases, but they are well-informed about iPhone market share. Thank you, I needed that :).
Most thieves steal for fencers, they don’t sell them themselves. “hey, get me 50 iPhones and I’ll pay you x”.
Most likely is that fence demand is down since the kill switch was added.
Why are you “pretty sure that thieves don’t check to see what phone you have before they steal it.”?
Could be that Samsung devices are simply more desirable.
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! True!
“…now that Activation Lock is on by default on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus…”
Activation Lock is on by default for iOS 8. And because iPhone owners upgrade to the latest version of iOS so fast, I expect the decline of iPhone thefts to accelerate.
It just goes to prove that thieves aren’t the smartest human beings.