Thieves on scooters and electric bikes increasingly target pedestrians to snatch iPhones, prioritizing unlocked devices that command up to $800 more value than locked ones.
Industrial-Scale Phone Thefts Grip Cities
A surge in street-level iPhone robberies has reached industrial proportions, particularly in urban areas like London. Authorities report that operations using stolen scooters and e-bikes allow thieves to seize phones swiftly. One major police crackdown resulted in 230 arrests and the recovery of over 1,000 devices in a single week.
Initial safety concerns prompted officers to halt pursuits, deeming risks to suspects too high. Officials have since authorized “tactical contact” maneuvers to dismount fleeing thieves from their bikes.
Premium Value of Unlocked Devices
Unlocked iPhones fetch a substantial premium due to easier access to personal data and financial accounts. Even though banking apps typically require Face ID or passcodes, phishing schemes enable thieves to capture login credentials.
“Phone thieves don’t just want the handset—they want access to bank accounts and personal information,” states Will Lyne, head of economic and cybercrime at London’s Metropolitan Police. He cites a case involving four men who handled over 5,000 stolen phones and drained linked financial accounts.
Dan Guido, CEO and cofounder of security firm Trail of Bits and strategic adviser to mobile security firm iVerify, explains the value gap: “A stolen phone may only be worth $50 to $200 when it is locked. But if you unlock it, it’s worth $500, or it’s worth $1,000.”
Phishing Tactics Bypass Security
Thieves employ advanced phishing to circumvent Activation Lock. Victims often receive messages mimicking Apple’s Find My interface, prompting them to enter passcodes. This allows buyers to reactivate and resell the devices.
Sophisticated tools, including pay-per-use phishing kits like “Find My iPhone Off,” facilitate these scams. Software such as iRealm generates fake Apple service pages, links, and scripts targeting Apple Pay. Additional features nullify Find My protections and enable voice-based AI phishing.
These services proliferate on Telegram channels, though some groups have been shut down following reports to the platform.
