Apple tracking iPhones stolen in looting

Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Christoforous, Brian Sozzi, and Dan Howley discuss how Apple is tracking and disabling its stolen iPhones.

Video Transcript

BRIAN SOZZI: Apple isn't letting store looters get away with its stolen iPhones. The company is disabling these stolen phones and displaying warning messages directing individuals to return the phone to their local store. Our tech editor Dan Howley is here with us. Dan, I guess these iPhones won't be counted in Apple's latest quarter.

DAN HOWLEY: Yeah, it's interesting. This is a piece of software that's installed on display devices that Apple has in its stores. They're the ones that are really out on the tables when you go into an Apple store. And it's basically set up so that if they do leave the premises or they are stolen, they can just kind of flip a switch, completely lock out the iPhone.

Similar to if your own phone was stolen, how you can lock it via iCloud, this is the same idea. They're able to lock it and then display a specific message saying, we know this has been taken from a store. Please return it or we'll contact authorities.

It's really a way for Apple to kind of ensure that its products don't just walk off at any point in time. But in this particular instance, obviously with different reports of looting at Apple stores, they had to close down some of their own stores as a result. This is really them kind of trying to make sure that they can get those products back without perhaps contacting the authorities in certain instances.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: So Dan, if these phones are really being tracked by local authorities, what are the consequences going to be for the looters? So they know where they are. What happens then?

DAN HOWLEY: I think that's probably up to either law enforcement or Apple if they want to press charges. You know, it's basically right now, if you look at some of the images that are circulating on Twitter of some of the phones, it's basically saying, look, this is an Apple phone. It's now disabled. Please return it to XYZ store.

So in Philadelphia, there was someone who put up a photo of one of the phones that had been stolen, saying please return it to the Chestnut Street store ASAP. But it didn't say anything about potentially being arrested for it. So it's kind of up in the air as to what Apple would do at this time.

BRIAN SOZZI: Dan, you follow Apple very closely. Given everything that's going on in the world, do we get those new iPhones later this year?

DAN HOWLEY: I mean, that's a great question. Kind of the way that we discussed COVID and the coronavirus outbreak and how Apple would not likely launch on time, just because the optics would be so bad, if we still had military camps-- you know, military medical camps set up and things along those lines.

With stores opening, states opening-- New York is about to open. New York City is about to open, kind of the last real hotspot in the US that hasn't gone through a reopening yet. It looks like they may still launch on time. But I don't know if we're going to see kind of an in-person Apple launch that we normally see. It would be hard for them to launch a device like this that's so important virtually.

But you know, they're holding their WWDC, Worldwide Developers Conference. That's going to be virtually this year. And that's an incredibly important event as well.

So at this point, it seems like we may get them on time, maybe a few weeks late simply because of the issues in the supply chain that the pandemic caused originally. But I don't see COVID being a reason for them, at this point at least, from a practical perspective.

As far as the protests go, it's unlikely that they'll be running until September. But I do think that Apple is well aware of their standing in the world, does speak out on certain social issues. So far, we haven't really heard much outside of Tim Cook specifically referring to the events to employees.

BRIAN SOZZI: All right, Dan Howley. Thanks so much.