Apple Picking Trend Becoming More Popular in Major US Cities

ELLEN LI
News Editor

As the season transitions to fall and holidays approach, a favorite pastime of some American families is apple picking on local farms. However, thieves across the nation are cashing in on another trend of “Apple picking” by stealing Apple products.
According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 30 to 40 percent of robberies in several major cities involve cell phones. On a related issue, according to a crime statistics report released by the New York Police Department (NYPD) in September, Apple thefts have jumped 40 percent from last year, meaning that one in seven crimes in New York City now involve Apple products. This unprecedented growth in Apple picking outpaced other major crimes in the city, including murder, rape and robbery.
At AHS, of the 30 to 40 electronic items reported lost or stolen each year, about 70 percent of them are Apple products, according to Assistant Principal of Student Services Chris Takeshita.
“It is sad that some people have to steal to obtain the item they want, and it is unfair to the victims,” senior Vivian Lin said. “[However], people should be more responsible with their devices. If they own it, they should be able to take care of it and watch over it.”
According to ABC News, the victims of Apple picking were generally focused on their cell phones, inattentive of their surroundings and looked as though they would not put up a fight. Furthermore, the victims were being targeted in public locations like fast-food restaurants, coffee shops and the streets.
However, the NYPD is trying to combat this issue with their “Anti-Apple Picking Campaign,” which was instituted on the launch day of the iPhone 5. This program records a product’s serial number with its corresponding owner information so that valuable electronic items can be retrieved in the event that it is lost or stolen.
“The theft of Apple phones and other hand-held devices drove the spike in robberies in larceny this year,” Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said in a post on the NYPD’s Facebook page. “Individuals alert to their surroundings are less likely to become victims, and Operation ID will help those whose property is lost or stolen to get it back.”
This increase in stolen Apple products and cell phone thefts has led to action from the government and major wireless carriers. In April, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski announced the creation and implementation of a database designed to prevent the use of stolen smartphones; it is expected to launch in coming months. This registry would allow a cell phone user to report their stolen device, and their carrier would block the device’s usage.
Consumers can also fight back against thieves by installing device recovery apps, such as “Find My iPhone” by Apple. This app and similar apps can track a lost or stolen device, but the device must remain turned on, and it cannot be wiped or reformatted.
“[‘Find My iPhone’] can be bypassed by thieves with a bit of knowledge,” senior Jia Yu said. “Apple should integrate a system that always runs in the background recording the global location of the device. However, such a system would greatly decrease the battery life, not to mention other concerns such as privacy issues.”
Nevertheless, apps like “Find My iPhone” can still be an invaluable tool in the event of theft, but police caution people to remain alert of their surroundings to prevent future incidents from occurring.