- Targeted thefts: London criminals prioritize iPhones and discard Androids.
- Repeated cases of victims who had Android phones returned to them after the model was checked.
- The key factor is resale value: iPhone loses less value than Android.
- Networks move up to 40% of stolen phones to international markets, according to British press.
A striking pattern has been detected in London: thieves who return Android phones And they keep the iPhones, driven by the money they can get from reselling them. Several recent incidents point to a widespread practicenot just isolated cases, and They are generating debate between users and authorities.
Selective thieves: if it's not an iPhone, it's not of interest.
Testimonies from victims in different neighborhoods of the city describe similar scenes: groups that snatch mobile phonesThey evaluate the model and, if it's Android, they discard it. Sam, who was robbed by several individuals, recounted that after taking his phone, a camera, and even his hat, one of the perpetrators returned to give him back the device after realizing it wasn't an iPhone, with an unequivocal comment: "I'm not keeping a Samsung".
Mark experienced something similar with a thief on an electric bicycle: after a snatch-and-grab and a few meters of escape, The assailant looked at the terminal and dropped it to the groundIt was a Samsung Galaxy and, apparently, the risk wasn't worth the reward.
Similarly, one user recounted that her ex pixel It was stolen twice and on both occasions ended up being discarded when the thieves verified the modelThe cases are repeated, suggesting a deliberate preference rather than a coincidence.
Situations have also been described in which The attempted theft is deactivated when the attacker sees an Android device with no battery.One victim recalled how his would-be attacker lost interest upon realizing that The mobile phone was out of battery.and withdrew without further pressure.
Resale value, the driving force behind crime
The logic behind this selection is not ease of manipulation, since both Apple and Google have strengthened their systems, but rather the resale valueMarket research places the average annual depreciation of an iPhone at around 14,80%, compared to approximately the 32,18% on Android. Four years down the line, a iPhone can lose around 47,49% of its initial valueWhile Android flagship phones are approaching 80% depreciation.
This price difference fuels parallel distribution chains. Journalistic investigations describe networks that smuggle a large proportion of stolen terminals out of the country: it has been reported that up to 40% of the mobile phones stolen in London —some 40.000 per year— would end up in international markets, with a significant flow towards Asia.
Anti-theft technologies: useful, but not decisive
Both iOS and Android have raised the bar for security with features such as Stolen Device Protection en Apple and identity verification or lock after reset on Android (like Identity CheckThese measures complicate the use of the terminal without credentials, but do not eliminate the incentive when the device or its components have an output.
In fact, Reselling parts remains a channel, although manufacturers like Apple have tightened component matching. to make these repairs more difficult. For someone who buys a locked device, the risk of it ending up being a "paperweight" It is real, something that does not discourage those who operate in opaque markets with parts and chassis.
Modus operandi and European context
Quick robberies and muggings are common on the streets. electric bikeswith groups surrounding the victim or snatching the phone from their hands in the middle of the street. Although the The number of devices in the UK is split almost equally between Android and iPhone.Data and accounts show that Apple is the preferred target, reinforcing a pattern that affects the whole of Europe due to London's weight in the statistics.
The picture painted by the testimonies and the figures is consistent: Thieves prioritize iPhones because it's worth more and sells better in local and international resaleAndroid devices, in many cases, are returned or simply thrown away after a glance. Security improvements curb illicit uses, but they don't change the fact that the secondary market dictates the targets and risks.
I am a technology enthusiast who has turned his "geek" interests into a profession. I have spent more than 10 years of my life using cutting-edge technology and tinkering with all kinds of programs out of pure curiosity. Now I have specialized in computer technology and video games. This is because for more than 5 years I have been writing for various websites on technology and video games, creating articles that seek to give you the information you need in a language that is understandable to everyone.
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