More than 100 Apple Store customers are victims of follow-away burglaries | Hacker News Reader

More than 100 Apple Store customers are victims of follow-away burglaries

latimesblogs.latimes.com

19 pointsilamont17 comments

I don't suppose this type of crime is common, but to the extent that it happens, it's probably an inevitable consequence of people walking around the mall with a bag that screams, "Hey, I'm carrying $1500 in unopened electronics."

In any case, you're better off buying computers from Amazon just to avoid the ~$50-100 in sales tax.

Ever since I got followed down the street after buying a mobile phone a few years ago, I've always taken one of those big reusable supermarket bags with me to buy anything pricey. People are far less likely to look twice at you if you've got a Tesco bag than an Apple or mobile shop bag.

Maybe Apple (and other similar stores) should stop putting their name on bags. Just use a plain one.

Or at least give people that option.

I remember hearing a year or so ago that Hermes (or some other similar luxury brand) had started to offer plain white bags at their stores for customers who didn't want to be seen buying high priced luxury items in the midst of a rescission.

I don't know if ordering online is necessarily safer. The first time I ordered something from Zappos, I heard the doorbell, but I wasn't dressed, so I just saw the delivery guy drop off the box through the blinds. I went to put clothes on and go get the package. By the time I went outside it was gone (maybe 5-10 minutes later). Apparently someone was following the delivery truck around and just taking packages...

Interesting story, disappointingly unreflective and myopic discussion here.

Buying a computer from Amazon is only cheaper because of US law unfairly privileging internet retailers over bricks-and-mortar. The sales tax pays for things in your community. You know, the physical location where you eat and sleep?

Why exactly should someone well-off enough to afford a brand-new $2,000 MacBook Pro be able to escape paying sales tax just because they bought it on the internet (and they even have the money to afford an existing computer and internet connection in the first place), but the food that a struggling single parent working near minimum wage needs to survive should be subject to sales tax?

Further, the Apple Store isn't just a retail outlet, it's also a service center. Do you think everyone who got robbed was buying a brand-new one? Maybe they were picking up their repair.

It's fairly unsurprising that an expensive computer left in a parked car gets ripped off in an urban center.

It is when you left it in your trunk out of sight. My car doesn't get randomly broken into, when was yours?

>My car doesn't get randomly broken into

Um...

If you'd read the article you'd know that the cars aren't being randomly broken into. They are being targeted by people who saw you place the expensive computer in the trunk. So if it's out of sight or not is totally irrelevant in this case.

Um, I suspect that may have been the point.

If only there were a way to purchase electronics using a 'machine' from the comfort of your home and then utilize some sort of electronic banking mechanism to pay for it and then a shipping company to transport it to your door. That would solve this issue.

Don't you think saying this is akin to saying a rape is the victim's fault because she wore a short skirt?

No, but I do think it is akin to saying a rape is the victim's fault because they went to a bar instead of using eHarmony from the comfort of home. So, i'd say it is even more ridiculous that your analogy.

It isn't. It's more akin to saying: "If no one ever went out dressed like they were clubbing and stayed home playing Second Life instead, no one would ever get raped walking back from clubs."

But then who knows? In that case one might see an increase of rapists knocking on people's front doors.

Some scientists would say of such statements: "It's so bad, it's not even wrong!"

Not when your neighbors, your delivery guy, and anyone passing by on the street knows the exact address at which you got your expensive package delivered. If you're lucky and the package wasn't just left outside your front door with not even a knock, earlier than expected (happened to my 24" cinema display). I religiously go out of my way to recycle conspicuous boxes and packaging away from home too, because seeing that kinda box sticking out of your recycling bin isn't a great idea either.

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