Official News page 8

REAL LIFE NEWS: TECHNOLOGY TRIUMPS OVER CRIME, BUT RAISES PRIVACY ISSUES

by Hazed

At first sight this seems like a dumb criminal story, in which a thief’s carelessness leads to his capture, but actually it has more serious privacy issues.

A woman who had her iPhone stolen while she was on a Disney cruise holiday was able to identify the thief, because the photos he took using the phone were sent back to her.

Unbeknownst to the criminal, the phone was set up to automatically upload photos taken on it to the owner’s iCloud account. So after the phone was stolen, Katy McCaffrey was able to check out the new images as they were taken. She then posted the pics on Facebook. They showed the thief - who worked on the cruise ship - partying and drinking with other crew members.

The thief has been placed on “administrative leave” by Disney Cruises and the phone will be returned to Kate when the ship docks.

So that’s great: technology trumps tealeaf.

But what about the privacy issues? Well, suppose the phone hadn’t been stolen, but had been sold on second-hand to an innocent buyer. The original owner could still have access to everything on the phone, including confidential details or private pictures, if the iCloud backup hadn’t been disabled. It’s a simple on/off switch in the phone’s settings, but not everyone would realize this was necessary.

I suppose the moral is that if you buy second-hand gadgets, you should always check they are not still communicating with their original owner. And, of course, if you’re a thief, make sure the phone won’t lead you straight to jail.

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