‘Looted’ Apple Devices Now Being ‘Tracked’ According To Alert Appearing On Stolen iPhones

LOS ANGELES, CA. (THECOUNT) — Looters who smashed and grabbed countless devices from Apple stores during a week of unrest, are being met with an message appearing on those devices, saying – They are being “tracked.”

Thieves possessing looted phones are now finding messages appearing on screens reading, “This device has been disabled and is being tracked. Local authorities will be alerted.”

VIA TMZ:

[Looters] won’t be able to use or pawn the stolen gadgets, thanks to some tech foresight and amateur thievery.

… While looters probably thought they were getting away with grabbing an expensive toy off the showroom shelves at the Apple Store, they basically ended up with paperweights.

… The phones and laptops stolen from the Apple Store are demos, and they come equipped with special programs that prevent the products from being reset to factory settings, rendering them almost useless.

Looters, who ransacked the popular outdoor shopping mall over the weekend, were unable to break into the Apple Store’s highly-secured area, where the goods for sale are kept.

It’s good news for Apple … Sources say the recent looting at Apple Stores across the country, which includes at least two Apple Stores in L.A., is not as bad as it looked at first glance.

DEVELOPING::

Geo quick facts: Los Angeles is a sprawling Southern California city and the center of the nation’s film and television industry. Near its iconic Hollywood sign, studios such as Paramount Pictures, Universal and Warner Brothers offer behind-the-scenes tours. On Hollywood Boulevard, TCL Chinese Theatre displays celebrities’ hand- and footprints, the Walk of Fame honors thousands of luminaries and vendors sell maps to stars’ homes – wikipedia.