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John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

orchardandvine.net

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Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#21

Post by mnd999 »

tommica wrote: post #19
gommm wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My phone (a samsung s21 ultra) was snatched from my hand while I was using it to check google maps in Barcelona. I tried to remote wipe it 5 minutes later at my hotel but it had already been disconnected. So the thief was very quick at removing the sim card. I checked online since and it seems that even with the advent activation lock, there's still a lot of phone thefts in some countries. They just sell the spare pa…

Damn, stolen while using it, that is quite brazen :(

Very common. Much easier and less dangerous to snatch it when someone has it out quickly than to hold someone up.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#22

Post by HPsquared »

tommica wrote: post #19
gommm wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My phone (a samsung s21 ultra) was snatched from my hand while I was using it to check google maps in Barcelona. I tried to remote wipe it 5 minutes later at my hotel but it had already been disconnected. So the thief was very quick at removing the sim card. I checked online since and it seems that even with the advent activation lock, there's still a lot of phone thefts in some countries. They just sell the spare pa…

Damn, stolen while using it, that is quite brazen :(

That's probably the best time to steal it: the device is unlocked, giving access to the data and settings etc. Also the owner is distracted looking at the screen, and it's held in a position conducive to snatching. In short I'd expect this to be the main mode of phone theft directly from the owner.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#23

Post by petepete »

tommica wrote: post #19
gommm wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My phone (a samsung s21 ultra) was snatched from my hand while I was using it to check google maps in Barcelona. I tried to remote wipe it 5 minutes later at my hotel but it had already been disconnected. So the thief was very quick at removing the sim card. I checked online since and it seems that even with the advent activation lock, there's still a lot of phone thefts in some countries. They just sell the spare pa…

Damn, stolen while using it, that is quite brazen :(

It's a fairly common tactic in the UK. I've seen plenty of CCTV clips where kids cycle past people on their phones and snatch them. The thief is 10m away before the person's even reacted.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#24

Post by Xylakant »

aikinai wrote: post #18
Xylakant wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not related to personal theft, but to activation lock. Apple can (and will) lock these phones as well.

Oh yeah, good point. I can’t imagine how that’s worth it then…

They will sell the hardware to unwitting victims as new via eBay, Craigslist, … and disappear before the victim figures it out. It is a new iPhone in the original shrinkwrap - who’d become suspicious?

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#25

Post by Xylakant »

14 wrote: post #12
8organicbits wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought phone theft was still fairly common, although I have a hard time understanding how it's profitable. https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/04/bathroom-tunneling-b...

If you look at the cost of a new screen or battery you can see that parts do have some value. For a thief even $50 is a score.

Apples lockdown even includes hardware such as screens. You can’t just transplant an iPhone screen from one phone to another.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#26

Post by makeitdouble »

olliej wrote: post #5
francoisdevlin wrote: post #2

That's a nice tractor you've got there. It'd be a shame if something happened to it. Can I interest you in some protection... Err, 3 year service plan?

Activation lock for phones was demonstrably effective at reducing theft of the products it was applied to, so _if_ theft of tractors is an issue this seems like a good thing, _if_ JD is also willing to commit to/legally required to maintain the activation service.

I'm not sure we have proof it's that effective. Recently 400+ phones were stolen from a store in a well prepared way, so I assume there's plenty of ways to work around or get value from the stolen phones despite whatever Apple is doing:

https://www.macrumors.com/2023/04/06/washington-apple-store-...

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#27

Post by olliej »

makeitdouble wrote: post #26
olliej wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Activation lock for phones was demonstrably effective at reducing theft of the products it was applied to, so _if_ theft of tractors is an issue this seems like a good thing, _if_ JD is also willing to commit to/legally required to maintain the activation service.

I'm not sure we have proof it's that effective. Recently 400+ phones were stolen from a store in a well prepared way, so I assume there's plenty of ways to work around or get value from the stolen phones despite whatever Apple is doing: https://www.macrumors.com/2023/04/06/washington-apple-store-...

Why would activation lock prevent stealing a new phone? Definitionally a phone that has not been sold doesn't have an account tied to it.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#28

Post by olliej »

Xylakant wrote: post #15
aikinai wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those are new in-box unactivated phones, completely unrelated to personal theft and activation lock.

It’s not related to personal theft, but to activation lock. Apple can (and will) lock these phones as well.

Is that something that is happening? I would have thought it would have been in the news before if apple had been doing that.

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#29

Post by flangola7 »

olliej wrote: post #27
makeitdouble wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure we have proof it's that effective. Recently 400+ phones were stolen from a store in a well prepared way, so I assume there's plenty of ways to work around or get value from the stolen phones despite whatever Apple is doing: https://www.macrumors.com/2023/04/06/washington-apple-store-...

Why would activation lock prevent stealing a new phone? Definitionally a phone that has not been sold doesn't have an account tied to it.

Apple can still lock those phones. They track what is in stock and what has been sold

Re: John Deere 'Kill Switch' renders stolen tractors useless (2022)

#30

Post by alpaca128 »

Gigachad wrote: post #3

Tbh this seems not that problematic. I get that there is a lot of distasteful stuff going on around John Deere, but I think it's useful to see this on it's own which is a useful feature. Account locks have done a huge amount to reduce phone theft, a tractor is 100x more expensive.

I'm not sure what's not distasteful about the manufacturer having the power to turn your investment into a brick at any time, potentially blocking any customer request with "you violated the terms of service".
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