Given the price of most iPhones and the fact that owners carry them everywhere, they're attractive and easy targets for thieves, but they could soon become less attractive.
In fact, according to an internal Apple memo obtained by MacRumors, the company is implementing a system whereby Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers will be alerted if an iPhone issued to them has been lost or damaged. stolen, and they will ask not to fix it.
The system will apparently work through a link to the GSMA Device Registry, which is a global database where devices can be reported as missing or missing. If an iPhone shows up there, the repairer's internal MobileGenius or GSX system will display a message saying so.
While Apple hasn't confirmed this change yet, it would make sense for the company to implement it, and it's not the first thing it's done to make it harder to fix stolen iPhones.
Already, if Find My iPhone has been activated for the phone and the customer is unable to deactivate it, the repair will be rejected, as this suggests that the device has been lost or stolen. But this new system should hook devices where Find My iPhone has never been activated for some reason.
Analysis: better late than never
While that sounds like a good idea, it also seems like an obvious idea and something we're surprised it hasn't happened yet, as we can't imagine it being too difficult to implement.
Making stolen iPhones difficult to repair will make them much less attractive to thieves in the first place, so this should reduce instances of theft, though of course this only helps if the device has been registered with the Registry. GSMA devices or if logged in as stolen. to get started.
Still, between that, Find My iPhone, and Face ID, stealing an iPhone is likely to cause more trouble than it's worth in most cases.
What is not clear, however, is whether the repair provider would alert the registered owner or the police if a lost or stolen device came to them. This report simply says they won't fix it, which might reduce theft in the first place, but won't help reunite a phone with its rightful owner.