I don't think a reasonable person can take anything Gizmodo says on this topic seriously any more.
I don't think a reasonable person can take anything Gizmodo says on this topic seriously any more.
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FWIW, I'd want there to be stricter rules for my phone than for my car. Yeah, my car might cost more, but it's insured, and there's nothing in there other than my name, address, phone #, and registration number, all of which are public data or the next thing to it. My phone contains much more compromising data, plus the ability to impersonate me via text to anyone that I have saved as a contact. If it's a smartphone, it's even moreso. If it's an iPhone, it's even moreso moreso.
I have an app on my Droid (and I'm sure there is an equivalent for the iPhone, BB, and others) that if I lose my phone, I can simply log onto the website and lock it down remotely. I can then trace the location via the GPS even while the phone is completely locked up. It also backs up phone on a regular basis.
But to the point - My opinion on the matter is this (based on the info I've read on several different sites)
The person who found the phone really didn't make what I would consider a 'due diligence' effort to located the lawful owner.
I do not have a problem with Gizmodo paying the $5,000 for the phone in theory, they openly admit their "checkbook journalism". (Whether you consider that journalism or not is an entirely different debate) However, it's still unclear just how much they knew about the situation before they purchased the phone. We're they told he contacted Apple? Or did they know he didn't make a solid effort? Regardless, I believe they are protected under the law in terms of not being subject to a 'raid'.
I do believe the person who found the phone is probably the most 'guilty' party in this situation.
I believe the "raid" on the Gizmodo Editors home was uncalled for, and most likely illegal based on the protections in the law for journalists and reporters in the Privacy Protection Act which shields them, even if the subject is under investigation for illegal activities.
I don't think that Apple has done anything wrong here. They aren't the ones who raided the house and even if they were called - do you really believe that anyone working in their call center or tech support centers who supposedly took the call would have the knowledge or resources to address that call in any way that would be reasonable considering the circumstances? No way.
Last edited by [AK]Hylander; 05-02-2010 at 06:31 AM.
"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." - Winston Churchill
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I disagree Apple didn't do anything wrong. If you lost your phone and called the police would you expect the same result? Of course not, Apple must have made this out to be a bigger issue than it was, to cover up the fact that a "douchebag" employee was at the bar and lost his phone.
August Knights Ventrilo status
Don't let your Alligator mouth overload your Canary ASS!
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."- Albert Einstein
If you find yourself in a losing battle....your tactics suck!
"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." - Winston Churchill
---
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UPDATE: A sharp-eyed reader points out that the Wall Street Journal Monday quoted a deputy district attorney saying that Apple contacted authorities and "advised [them] there had been a theft," which, according to the Journal, led to the search warrant and the investigation.
Apparently Apple did call it in as a theft - this after it had been returned by people who found and then returned it, upon confirming that it was missing. Sounds like pure spite. My only hope is that the Gizmodo raid was not suggested by Apple. My hope is Apple was more interested in some pointed questions at the original finder - who IMHO does have some explaining to do. As to Gizmodo, whoever made that call was wrong. Why do subpoena's even exist, if even in a case where there was no burglary, they deem it appropriate to do a raid and seizure?
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/04/iphone-finder/
"A friend of Hogan’s then offered to call Apple Care on Hogan’s behalf, according to Hogan’s lawyer. That apparently was the extent of Hogan’s efforts to return the phone."
Yeah, my friend tried to return. Yeah.........
"“He made a mistake,” Bornstein added. “He should have just immediately turned that phone in.”
That's from his own lawyer.
[AK]Bribo
If you were a zombie and I had to kill you, I'd feel sad.
It boggles my mind that people could somehow blame Apple for actions taken by the police in investigating the theft of their prototype.
I have absolutely no sympathy towards to idiot who found the phone or the turd that bought it.
The sun has fallen down
And the billboards are all leering
And the flags are all dead at the top of their poles.
It's interesting, because I'm equally amazed how Apple fans can see no wrong in Apple's counter actions in this case. To say it was all the police just acting on their own as they normally would is ... wow.
"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." - Winston Churchill
---
Hustedia.com | Husted Visuals | The Racing Historian
A lot of this depends on when Apple realized that their employee had lost this prototype. If the kid who found it called before it was known by Apple that it was lost then you would expect Apple to blow it off.
After all, why would you call Apple if you found a lost iPhone? Would you call Motorola because you found a lost Droid? They would probably tell you to contact AT&T or Verizon or whatever cell network the phone was on to try to track down the owner.
But of course the kid ALREADY KNEW the owner as he had powered the phone on in the bar and seen the employees Facebook account. He didn't make any attempt to contact the employee at all.
[AK]Bribo
If you were a zombie and I had to kill you, I'd feel sad.
Property is generally deemed to have been lost if it is found in a place where the true owner likely did not intend to set it down, and where it is not likely to be found by the true owner. At common law, the finder of a lost item could claim the right to possess the item against any person except the true owner or any previous possessors.[3][4]
The underlying policy goals to these distinctions are to (hopefully) see that the property is returned to its true original owner, or "title owner." Most jurisdictions have now enacted statutes requiring that the finder of lost property turn it in to the proper authorities; if the true owner does not arrive to claim the property within a certain period of time, the property is returned to the finder as his own, or is disposed of.[5] In Britain, many public businesses have a lost property desk, which in the United States would be called a lost and found.
At least he has 5k for legal fees.
August Knights Ventrilo status
Don't let your Alligator mouth overload your Canary ASS!
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."- Albert Einstein
If you find yourself in a losing battle....your tactics suck!
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/04/...ps-on-gizmodo/
Which leaves open the question of whether Apple ever asked the authorities to look into the matter. We put that question to Apple public relations four days ago. We have yet to receive a reply.
UPDATE: A sharp-eyed reader points out that the Wall Street Journal Monday quoted a deputy district attorney saying that Apple contacted authorities and "advised [them] there had been a theft," which, according to the Journal, led to the search warrant and the investigation.
UPDATE 2: San Mateo County chief deputy DA Steve Wagstaffe offered more detail about Apple's role in an interview Tuesday with the San Jose Business Journal:
"Wagstaffe said that an outside counsel for Apple, along with Apple engineer [Gray] Powell, called the District Attorney’s office on Wednesday or Thursday of last week to report a theft had occurred and they wanted it investigated. The District Attorney’s office then referred them to the Rapid Enforcement and Allied Computer Team, or REACT, a multi-jurisdictional, high-tech crime task force that operates under the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office."
[AK]Bribo
If you were a zombie and I had to kill you, I'd feel sad.
Then the question is I guess was it actually a theft? or did the idiot leave it at the bar and needed to cover his ass. I still doubt there would have been the same response if Squid called and reported his phone "stolen". I think Gizmodo should be as accountable as say a pawn shop would for receiving stolen merchandise, but think they went overboard with their response.
August Knights Ventrilo status
Don't let your Alligator mouth overload your Canary ASS!
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."- Albert Einstein
If you find yourself in a losing battle....your tactics suck!