Gizmodo: stolen

Thief Steals Laptop, Taunts Victim Using Her Facebook Account

Danny Allen — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:55:40 EDT

Not content with stealing a UK woman's laptop, iPhone, Nintendo DS and handbag—a shithead burglar has logged into her Facebook account, leaving messages like "on my new laptop", "listening to music on my new phone feels so good."

The illiterate low-life went on to mock:

"I have the laptop, phones ok but a bit scratched itll do, tv was rubbish so I left it , ds was a bonus, now to the porn shop, thankyou toshiba is my favourite make".

The sick scenario is a cautionary true tale to think twice about what data you store on your laptop, and a reminder that you should use some basic security to protect it. [Telegraph via TechRadar]

GadgetTrak Security System Catches iMac Thief With Startling Precision

Dan Nosowitz — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 21:40:00 EDT

GadgetTrak, an anti-theft tracking system, claimed its first victory, and we're pretty impressed. An iMac was stolen two weeks ago, and the thief wasn't clever enough to reformat. Big mistake: GadgetTrak managed to find his location and took his photo.

After two weeks, the thief made the mistake of connecting to the internet, and GadgetTrak collected tons of info. It triangulated his longitude and latitude via WiFi (and provided a link to the location on Google Maps!), his IP address, WiFi networks in range, and the username, and even took a photo of him with the iMac's built-in webcam. The iMac and two other stolen laptops were traced to a tattoo parlor in Brooklyn and recovered.

Of course, the system only works if the thief neglects to reformat the hard drive and connects to the internet, but we'd be willing to bet that that's not as uncommon as you'd think. It's a pretty great system, as long as thieves don't figure out how to work around it. [GadgetTrak]

This Laptop Thief Has Balls Of Steel

Sean Fallon — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:20:00 EDT

According to a police report, 19-year old Jesse Phoutthaphaphone...pppppthft was sitting by a cracked window in his home, typing on MySpace when a thief suddenly popped in the window and stole the laptop right out of his hands.

"I was typing and all of the sudden just woosh! I was like oh, what the hell?" Phoutthaphaphone said.

"This is clearly a real desperate act, I mean he (the suspect) stole the computer out of his hands while he's in his house," Minneapolis Police Sgt. Jesse Garcia explained.

"He was probably just creeping right here, I was typing, and then all of the sudden he just yanked it," the victim remarked. He only saw the suspect's hands; then saw his back as he ran around the corner of his home.

Pppppppthfaftpatphthftyaphone chased after the suspect, eventually cornering him in a nearby garage. The homeowner saw the commotion and jumped in to help—eventually they were both able to pin down the thief until the police arrived. Naturally, he incident described as both "bold and bizarre" has left authorities baffled. [Kare11 via Twitter / Image via Slashdot]

Stolen Windows Mobile 6.5 Prototype Phone Wiped Remotely

Jason Chen — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:00:00 EST

As is common practice with phones on corporate networks, that prototype HTC phone with Windows Mobile 6.5 on it stolen from Telstra's CEO was remotely wiped after it was reported swiped.

A Microsoft staffer confers to APC Mag that the user data and the operating system were both erased as soon as CEO Sol Trujillo reported his phone stolen, and shouldn't have left the thief too much time to get data off of it. The upside is that even though Windows Mobile 6.5 isn't quite ready for wide release, it's ready enough to have the remote wipe feature enabled. [APC Mag]

iRobot, Corporate Sabotage, Stolen Plans and Destroyed Evidence

Jason Chen — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Noah Shachtman over at Wired has a very interesting look at iRobot's six year battle with Robotic FX, a company started by a former employee who allegedly (and probably) stole schematics and plans in order to build a competitor. There's too much detail to work into a short summary, but Jameel Ahed, the former employee, was caught by a private investigator deleting documents and shredding CDs containing data that belonged to iRobot.

What's even more interesting is that the old phrase of "I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids" might be applicable here, with Ahed standing a pretty good chance (thanks to a mysterious military contract backer) of getting away with this scheme if he didn't destroy evidence. After all, even the military contacts who were trying to choose between vendors were angling for his robot to win. [Wired]

Revenge on Boss: Sell Her iPod touch on eBay

Charlie White — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 15:10:00 EST

However unbearable your work environment is, it could be worse. For instance, this network/systems administrator in a district courthouse somewhere in Louisiana hates his boss so much that he's apparently stolen her iPod touch right out from under her and now he's selling it on eBay.

"You might think I didn't really take her iPod but it 'came up missing' and nobody in the office knows where it is. She should lock her office more often... I'm just seeking some comfort to what I consider a horrible work environment. Maybe a small vacation to evacuate this heck hole for a week. Hot Springs Arkansas or something."

This one has us scratching our heads. Doesn't this perpetrator know that eBay is a public auction site frequented by millions of people?

He doesn't actually admit he stole this iPod, but he comes close. Certainly this violates eBay's terms of service. Anyway, the opening bid is inexplicably $550, way more than the $400 price of this 16GB iPod touch. Sounds like the Darwin Awards might be interested in this one. Seeking comfort? It's not going to be too comfortable being unemployed and in prison for larceny. [eBay]

Stolen Pixel Jewelry Proves Valkryrie Needs Bling More Than Food

Jason Chen — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 15:00:17 EDT

Essentially the female version of the 8-Bit Tie, these "Stolen Jewels" designs from Mike and Maaike are pixelized jewelry that you can actually wear. Sure, they look like they're either made out of paper or cheap cloth, but it's the idea that counts.

However, even though they look cool to you, if you ever get your wife these instead of real jewels, well, take a look at that video again. – Jason Chen

Designer Page [via Mocoloco via Yanko Design]

Shmancy Red One Camcorder Prototypes Stolen, $100k Reward for Info

Brian Lam — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 17:55:14 EDT

Jim Jannard, founder of Oakley sunglasses, and the man behind the high-pixel-count Red One HD camcorder has enemies. The camcorder, which is capable of ultra high-definition (4,520 x 2540 pixels) video in a $17.5K camera, had some prototypes and docs stolen from Red HQ last night. Since all competing gear is no less than $100K, industrial espionage isn't out of the question. Jannard is offering a reward of $100K to find out who stole the cam, and also relieves our pixel-hungry video junkies by saying that the theft won't throw off their '07 launch plans. Thanks for the tip, Curt. – Brian Lam

Red One Ultra HD Camcorder Prototype Ripped Off

How To: Steal a Laptop

Brian Lam — Mon, 07 Aug 2006 12:03:12 EDT

Here's a video of a lucky thief lifting a laptop from a computer store. We say lucky because the guy looks super conspicuous, wearing an oversized coat while store workers rock short sleeve t-shirts. He walks around like a spaz, pacing and fidgeting. And if that weren't enough to give the whole caper away, all of a sudden, The Pink Panther soundtrack starts playing in the store. Sheesh, guys, if you're going to steal, read The Art of Shoplifting first, mmm-kay?– Brian Lam

Computer Shoplifter [ Google Video ]
How to Shoplift [ Some Kid's Website ]