Things the guys who stole my phone have texted me to try to get me to unlock it
A stolen iPhone that ended up in China and triggered weeks of phishing and death-threat texts is prompting scrutiny of how Apple’s activation lock works and how thieves obtain owners’ contact details. Commenters generally conclude that a remotely erased, still-linked iPhone is effectively a brick, so the threats are social engineering aimed at getting victims to remove the device from their iCloud accounts. The exchange broadens into a debate over law enforcement’s low priority for such crimes, the role of Chinese and other international recycling and scam operations, and whether Apple’s tight hardware “parts pairing” is justified as anti-theft protection or is primarily anti-repair.
iPhone security, Lost Mode & Activation Lock
- Many commenters see the story as an implicit ad for Apple’s security: once a phone is passcode‑protected, put in Lost Mode, and remotely erased, thieves can’t access data or activate it without the owner’s Apple ID.
- Key point: remote erase does not remove Activation Lock; only explicitly removing the device from the iCloud account does. Several warn never to do that under pressure from scammers.
- Some confusion appears about whether devices can be cracked; consensus is that working exploits exist but are rare, expensive, and not used for random street theft.
How thieves contact the owner
- Multiple theories:
- Phone number from a physical SIM (not applicable to eSIM‑only US iPhone 14s).
- Contact info displayed via Lost Mode’s custom message.
- iCloud email address revealed on the activation prompt, then used as an iMessage address.
- One commenter notes that Apple partially obfuscates the email; others think Lost Mode or emergency contact messages are the more likely leak. Overall, the exact mechanism in this case is viewed as unclear.
Value of stolen iPhones & parts pairing
- Thieves still steal iPhones despite Activation Lock, likely to strip for parts or gamble on victims being phished into removing the lock.
- Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei market is mentioned as a major recycler / parts hub where locked phones are broken down and components reused.
- Strong debate over Apple’s parts pairing:
- Pro: reduces resale value of stolen phones and thus theft incentives.
- Con: functions as anti‑repair, locks out third‑party fixes, and is environmentally harmful.
- Several propose a middle ground where legitimate owners can securely unpair / re‑pair parts or where stolen components are tracked in a database.
Law enforcement & international angle
- Repeated claims that both Chinese and US authorities largely ignore this type of cross‑border phone theft, focusing instead on regime stability or higher‑priority crimes.
- Suggestions that Apple or third‑party sites could aggregate “Find My” locations to identify US‑side fencing operations; others doubt police would act on such data.
User reactions, strategies & ethics
- Many recommend: immediately mark as lost, erase, keep device on the account, and then block all scam messages; threats are seen as copy‑pasted intimidation.
- Some discuss replying with censored Chinese political phrases to scare scammers; others doubt effectiveness and warn against provoking states.
- A side thread argues over harsh punishments as deterrence, with strong pushback that proportional, humane penalties matter more than maximal efficiency.