Just a word of advice: if you are going to steal a mobile phone from a passenger, you are advised to wipe it before using it. An American Airlines FA may soon lose her job for not knowing better.
A passenger reached her destination, began to exit the aircraft, then realized she did not have her cell phone. She was not allowed back to her row, but a FA agreed to search for it while she waited outside the aircraft door.
The FA returned, stating she could not find it. Dejected, the passenger went home, likely concluding another passenger had stolen it.
But then something funny happened. About a week later pictures started appearing on her iCloud account (Apple’s cloud backup tool). And not just any pictures…but pictures of the FA!
Her friend reached out to American Airlines’ on Twitter, asking for an explanation.
A friend of mine lost her phone on an @AmericanAir flight and realized while deboarding. She tried to turn around (still on plane) and FA told her to deplane, she’d look and bring it to her. FA told her she found nothing. Days later, selfies of FA appear in her iCloud. Explain. pic.twitter.com/vYI32pWeSa
— thankful szn (@thebrainofbobby) February 3, 2018
AA has requested more information.
How to Steal a Phone from an Airplane
Here’s how you do, if you’re going to do it. Once you have the iPhone, you put it in airplane mode, ensure wi-fi is off, then go into settings and choose “restore factory settings”. Once that is done, you can log in to your own iCloud account and restore from a backup. Otherwise it can be tracked to you. Just exchanging SIM cards will not cut it.
And to passengers: there’s a reason to assign a passcode when turning the phone on. That won’t stop a determined thief, but it may have stopped this FA from helping herself to the passenger’s phone.
CONCLUSION
I hope you can sense the facetious tone of my post. In case it isn’t clear, shame on the FA for (allegedly) stealing the phone. There is absolutely no excuse for it and she should be promptly terminated. Actions have consequences and there should be no second chances for stealing.
What a stupid FA!!!! Just FYI, to “restore factory settings” on the phone a thief would need to enter the passcode at least 2 or 3 times. You also need to disconnect that phone from your iCloud and that needs your iCloud password. Thus, not that easy to just wipe of a stolen phone and start using as it is yours.
Why would you explain HOW to do it. You are helping a thief – I realize any google search would yield the same result, but why would you feel the need to post it?
“Here’s how you do, if you’re going to do it. Once you have the iPhone, you put it in airplane mode, ensure wi-fi is off, then go into settings and choose “restore factory settings”. Once that is done, you can log in to your own iCloud account and restore from a backup. Otherwise it can be tracked to you. Just exchanging SIM cards will not cut it.”
+1 Now the terrorists have won!!!!!!
The FA is now a felon.
Additionally, if you keep your iOS updated, currently if you do a factory restore, it still will not log-out the iCloud account from the phone without the password, after it’s started back up. So important to have iCloud signed in and password protection!
Shameful of you chose not to post my reply – I guess as a writer you don’t believe in Freedom of Speech – defined as “the right to express any opinions without censorship or restraint”. You had your opinion of how to help a thief steal an iphone and get away with it, but when I chose to criticize you – you censor it. Hypocrite
Good call, dumbass. Look above.
Also, that’s only a partial definition. Freedom of speech only applies to government censorship, not a private blog and its annoying commenters. Capitalizing it doesn’t change anything either… but nice attempt at sounding #intelligent and #learned.
Further, censoring you wouldn’t be hypocritical because Matthew never said he wouldn’t censor you (even though he *didn’t* actually do it). So you’re wrong on another definition.
Go get your dictionary and common sense, snowflake Jim.
Only in America do people whine about their freedom of speech on someone else’s blog.
Not sure what the basis for your comment is, Jim. I did not censor your earlier comment.
American Airlines – Going for Great!
I saw another link that says the photos are not of an AA employee (Gary Leff blog). Is it possible it really was stolen by another passenger?
I trust that is the case. I was glad read Gary’s update on the story. It seems this was perhaps another passenger.
This is an old case in 2012. Almost identical thing happened to a man who left his iPad on the plane and the FA said she would try to find it. Told the man she did not find it and even hugged the man. Guess what, the iPad was eventually traced back to her home… thanks to the App Find My iPad.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/09/22/flight-attendant-stole-passenger-ipad-police-say.html
Here is another recent case an AA FA stole an expensive Burberry coat from a passenger who inadvertently left it behind. The passenger eventually filed a police report and the police took it seriously. After reviewing the video records, police concluded a FT stole it.
https://thepointsguy.com/2017/05/tip-recovering-items-left-on-plane/
The coat was recovered. AA gave a measly 10K miles as “apology”. No idea of the fate of the FA thief.
“Matthew” the article author is hot as freaking hell. Hi Matt *bites lip suggestively*