Do you know this guy? [ed. photos removed] He seems to be in the possession of the iPhone that Dino's dad lost. Before losing the phone, his dad set up a rule where any email sent from the phone blind-cc'ed his personal email address, which we think is a pretty brilliant low-tech security solution for tracking down a lost/stolen phone or laptop.
Was hoping you could give me some advice. My dad (64) lost his iphone today. He went to the At&T store and had the service stopped and got a SIM card to put into his old cell phone.
Well he checked his aol account tonight and saw pictures of some guy holding an iphone up and taking pics in the mirror. My dad had it set up that he was BCC on emails sent out on the iphone.
We emailed the the recipient of the emails to ask who was in these pictures and that we would like the phone back. He hasn't responded back yet.
What should we do? I think in the morning my dad will file a report with the police. I tried googling the email address ([redacted]@hotmail.com) and no luck with that. Do you have any other advice we should do to get back the phone?
I posted the pics on flickr. If this is seen widely on the Internet do you think it would shame the guy into give us back the phone?
- Dino A.
Paramus , NJ
If he found the phone and didn't immediately bother looking through it for a way to contact the owner, we imagine he plans on keeping it. If it was stolen, we're pretty certain shame will not help. But who knows?
One guy whose Sidekick got stolen was able to track down the culprits because they took pictures of themselves on it. He set up a site posting the pictures and an ad-hoc internet manhunt formed and eventually they caught the guy.
On the off chance this was all a good-natured mixup (or he bought it used and didn't know it was stolen/lost), we'll post your story.
You might want to email him again with a detailed description of what was on the phone, as well as any identifying marks and likely places where it was lost or stolen, so that he knows you're not a scammer yourself.
Oh, and before anyone does or says anything too douche-y about the guy in the photos, remember that we really don't know how he came about it.
RELATED: How Not To Steal A Sidekick
Sidekick Return From Thief, After Mass Internet Shaming
@Palak Desai: Yeahhh, right...
]]>@ccbweb: And I bet you would do the same thing. Find/Buy/Take an iPhone that is ACTIVE (until the owner had it suspended) and not be curious about why you can use all of its features with no penalty?
You say that the Consumerist, as a whole, is pathetic to hand down a manhunt on someone that "came across" an iPhone?
I lose my iPhone.
Someone finds it and uses it.
I find out their e-mail address due to BCC thingy.
I e-mail them.
No response.
E-mail.
No response.
Post on Consumerist about douche that has my phone.
Internet peeps lay the smackdown.
I don't see anything wrong in the way that this was handled. Didn't sound like any threats of harm were issued on either side. The punk (and yes, he looks like a tremendous DOUCHE!) took pictures of himself with the phone. Yeah, I'd say he had no intention of giving the phone back until he realized that A LOT of people knew what he looked like and that he had property that did not belong to him.
So the asshat was a little embarrassed. Who cares?
]]>@Murph1908: that's true genius right there ^
]]>I would of kept it and flashed the phone..and sold it to arabia...where no IMEI blacklists exist...
]]>Wait, nevermind. That would be fun to watch. Go ahead story person and con these internet vigilantes! They'll never figure out the plan!
]]>Michael sent you a message.
--------------------
Re: Stolen Iphone
im not in trouble because
the pictures that i sent were because i wanted the owner to contact me.
he contacted today early and he said that he was going to pick it up tomorrow. he even said not today because he was working.
you can call him if u want
--------------------
@WalrusTaco: i lost my phone one afternoon running to the bus stop. the guy that found it called every single listing in my phone, all 65 of them. but at least he gave it back to me.
]]>@RachelBrutus: Emerson TellEm? Like Soulja Boy TellEm? Yup, 100% Grade "A" Douche Nozzle in the hizzy.
]]>@Zeniq: She has a particular set of skills, skills that make her a nightmare for people like you!
"You" meaning daughter-kidnappers.
]]>@morganlh85: I've just added douchecanoe to my vocabulary of insults, that is awesome.
]]>I emailed this tip last night wondering if there was anything that could be done. And I am amazed that my dad got an email response from the guy that found his phone.
He later called my dad and they set up a time to meet tomorro so my dad can get his phone back. He also has seen this post and asked that the pictures be taken down too.
I haven't read all the posts here but I am grateful for all the help and simply amazed at the power of the internet. I never thought my dad would see his phone again.
Who needs facial recognition software when you have the internet!
Thank you very much and i'll keep you updated when my dad gets his iPhone back
Dino
]]>Besides making a good point, you have Doop as an avatar.
+1 for Making sense/Doop.
]]>@FarrellBeetle: @AlteredBeast: Opera Browser automatically views EXIF data if you dont already know(right click on pic and view properties)... firefox has a plugin for that
]]>"the pictures were to be meant to find the address of the owner so i could email and some fun.. to but yea the phone i would give it back tomorrow i already called the owner"
Sounds like he knew it wasn't his. If you found me in your car 10 miles away from where you left it would you accept, "Oh yeah, I just wanted to see how it handled and have some fun, but I was also going to the DMV so they could contact you about it and I can give it back".
IMO if all he gets are some harsh comments and emails then he's ahead of the game.
(Disclaimer: I've already emailed him the link to this posting, and I called him a stupid douche or somesuch. I'm sure I wasn't the first).
]]>And it looks like the pictures are gone.
]]>Anywho heres what I pulled:
GPS Lat: 40; 23.1; 0
GPS Lon: 74; 30.46; 0
@metalmarious: Even if it saved me tons of money, I wouldn't buy a phone secondhand unless it was somebody I knew really, really well. Who knows what kind of shenanigans are going on in the background? This is a prime example.
(Not that we know for sure that he didn't buy it from his BFF, but I have a feeling that wasn't the case.)
]]>another homo with an iphone
]]>Guilty steps, eh?
]]>@shorty63136: There are specfic programs for extracting this data. A google search for "view EXIF data" should help (I have a program home to do so, don't recall what it was, but it was small and free)
]]>That is, if that's the original data. (iPhone 2G also geotags, right?)
]]>I just emailed an image from my iPhone and I'm trying to figure out where the info is located.
]]>Wowsers.. He's obviously feeling the heat. According to his myspace profile his first name is Brian and he's 27.
]]>Zing!
]]>@n00nen0se: I was curious looking it over, and it went from public to private in between page clicks. Dude definitely knows something's up.
]]>This was with help of Lat Long info posted on the Flickr pictures.
]]>"...How does he twist the dance? Can't find a drink, oh man. Where are my keys? I lost my phone, phone..."
]]>@Sodypop: What's interesting is that THIS article also comes up with it...if he were to search for himself, he'd see we're all here plotting and scheming against him. :)
]]>That dude is totally going to get it! LOL
]]>Here you go: Pipl.com
[pipl.com]
Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Always BCC Myself
]]>@tbone13:
almost as douchy as using "teh"
@shorty63136: That's my thought to those decrying putting this up. Instead of buying the phone at a real store, they fell for some fence selling an OMG CHEAP iPhone...a deal too good to be true. Dingbat deserves the harassment, if ya ask me.
Would be interesting to find out that the OP isn't for real, though, as another commenter noted. That could stir some serious shit.
]]>Regardless of how he got the phone, he still is in possession of stolen property and could be charged for it. It could be worthwhile to fill out a police report in Jersey City. From there it could just be up to their caseload if it gets looked at. Who knows though, with his email out there I'm guessing he's getting pretty heavily flooded with hate mail right now and that might help facilitate the return of the phone.
]]>@calquist: I friended him. Maybe he'll accept.
]]>Perhaps you should have a handle on a situation before posting such things?
Pot, kettle, black.
]]>It looks awfully suspicious when you somehow get an ACTIVATED, 1st generation iPhone that has full contact list, email set up, probably some personalized apps, etc. You've gotta know it belongs to somebody other than you.
]]>"i already contact the owner.
the pictures were to be meant to find the address
of the owner so i could email
and some fun.. to but yea the phone i would give it back tomorrow
i already called the owner"
True or not, let's give him an opportunity to do the right thing before he gets truly roasted.
]]>Consumerist does have to be careful about this though. What says that the original 'victim' is even real, and that he's not just putting up some dude's picture/email to get him in trouble?
]]>@Chris Walters: I judge the kid to be a douche regardless of how he came by the phone based upon pics alone. Though his bathroom sure is the decorators' hotness..
]]>That's how I got the idea to search on Facebook. That's totally a Facebook/MySpace type of pose.
]]>"Here's his name, his picture, and his email address. Can we go get my phone now?"
Assuming the guy has a driver's license or is in the system somehow.
]]>All we need are the original photos, and hope the EXIF data can tell us something good! I'd love to help your dad get his phone back, Dino A.! :)
]]>http://www.hi5.com/friend/p57786072--╬╬╬↔iEmer§onTellEm↔╬╬╬----html
]]>Perhaps you should have a handle on a situation before posting such things? You note that you don't know how he came about it, but you feel it's reasonable and responsible to go ahead and hold him up for what you knew was coming anyway? Nice work.
]]>The Facebook account is from a person in NJ.
]]>As someone who is from New Jersey I feel so shamed from this. Everyone knows everyone is jersey so if you follow those facebook leads I'm sure you can find this guy.
]]>That kid is what happens when you mix slum-dog millionaires with american idol. i kid i kid...but seriously he looks like a bit of a loser.
]]>Probably between the face and real name the guy can be threatened (if not shamed) with potential police action enough to return the phone.
]]>o.O
Really?
Man, when these things come down in price, I am going to buy one, set that up, and 'lose' it at the nudie bar!
]]>I would do a search on facebook/myspace in that area. Looking at how he took those pictures I would not be surprise he use them for those sites.
Good luck getting the phone back.
]]>You could post this information on 4chan and see if anonymous takes interest in making this guy's life a living hell until he gives the phone back. Just keep in mind that /b/ is not your personal army, and they may or may not jump at the opportunity.
]]>Looks like the guy's dad will have a name, a face, and an email address to pick this guy up and hopefully get his phone back.
Good luck!
]]>teh douchiest
]]>Also, you can make a police report and get them to get a search warrant to get the Internet Service Provider to give you his contact info. (Assuming his IP is reading out on the e-mail forwarded to you.)
I'm a bit of an amateur detective (caught a car thief, a hit-and-run driver, helped a woman find her birth parents, etc.)
Go to my site, advicegoddess.com, look up my contact info, and e-mail me, and I'll help you further.
]]>The world may never know.
]]>It's true, we don't know how he got the phone.
That's why Chris did not suggest bombing the e-mail EECB-style.
Ahem.
]]>This was obtained from his facebook account. However, he has no friends associated with that account. I would keep searching any type of site that allows a search of email. Myspace, Bebo, what have you.
]]>@Skunky: I dunno...those glasses and that hair are pretty damned douche-y.
]]>Not after looking at those pictures he took of himself. But good luck!
]]>I naturally came here to post "New Jersey," but nothing gets past Consumerist readers.
]]>this is just precious.
]]>Are you from NJ?
]]>