There has been an epidemic in the last few years iPhone while walking on the street, thieves used scooters and electric bicycles to snatch devices from their owners.
The reason this is the method of choice for thieves is because it allows them to get hold of an unlocked iPhone, which costs them $800 more than a locked iPhone…
Industrial-scale phone theft
A report last year said the use of stolen scooters and e-bikes to steal phones on the streets had reached an “industrial scale”. One Met Police raid In just one week, 230 people were arrested and more than a thousand phones were found in London.
Part of the problem is that safety concerns initially led police to call off pursuits when the risks to thieves were deemed too high. In the UK, the decision was made to reverse this position and allow officers to use “tactical contact” to knock them off their bikes.
Unlocked iPhones cost up to $800
A Wired Unlocked phones attract a significant premium because they facilitate access to data and financial accounts, the report said. Although banking and other financial applications require Face ID or a password to log in, phishing attempts can be made to gain access.
“Phone thieves don’t just want to get access to phones, they want access to bank accounts and personal information,” says Will Lyne, head of economic and cybercrime at London’s Metropolitan Police. Lyne highlights one case where four men were caught handling more than 5,000 stolen phones and spending money from their financial accounts on the devices.
Dan Guido, CEO and co-founder of security firm Trail of Bits and strategic advisor to mobile security firm iVerify, says a stolen phone might only be worth $50 to $200 when it’s locked. “But if you unlock it, it’s worth $500 or it’s worth $1,000.”
A law enforcement officer’s iPhone was stolen and they received a phishing message impersonating the Apple Find My page and asking for the phone’s password. It allows the buyer of a stolen iPhone to remove the Activation Lock and sell it as a working device if someone gets their hands on it.
The illicit trade is aided by sophisticated phishing software sold on a pay-per-use model.
Phishing kits called “Turn off my iPhone” that can be used to access accounts; and scripts and AI voice calling software to perform phishing operations (…)
A video obtained by researchers shows a program called iRealm that creates phishing links and pages that mimic Apple services. Other posts related to iRealm mention features like “Unlock My iPhone,” advertise “scripts” that mention Apple Pay, and that the software can provide a “seamless experience” for “accessing and unlocking Apple devices.”
Many of these services are offered through Telegram channels. After contacting the company, they removed half a dozen groups advertising these services.
The author of the photo John RV about Splash
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