Find my iPhone hunt ends with family being assaulted

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iPhone 6s
This Find my iPhone story did not end well.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

There’s no doubting that Apple’s “Find my iPhone” feature can be pretty useful at times. But a recent story highlights the feature’s potential dark side — as a family was attacked after a group of people knocked on their door, erroneously claiming their lost handset was inside the family’s home.

Images released by the police.
Images released by the police.

The incident took place in the early hours of Thanksgiving in the Bronx. Two woman and a man demanded their iPhone from inside the home. When the 43-year-old woman and her son who answered the door said they didn’t have the device, the offenders turned aggressive.

They were finally convinced to leave, but when the mother and son tried to write down the car license plate, the suspects attacked them and made their getaway. Both mother and son were treated for injuries at the nearby Jacobi Hospital.

There’s been no word on why the offenders thought their iPhone was inside the house, but it’s another reminder of why it can be better to let police investigate disappearing handsets rather than taking matters into your own hands.

Last year, a U.K. man was charged with murder after using Find My iPhone to track down and kill the thug who stole his son’s iPhone at knifepoint.

Source: NBC New York

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