Bug Sends Lost-Phone Seekers To Same Wrong Address

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Bug Sends Lost-Phone Seekers To Same Wrong Address

Posted by timothy on Tuesday January 15, 2013 @04:45AM from the geo-magnetic-personality dept.

netbuzz writes "A mysterious GPS-tracking glitch has brought a parade of lost-phone seekers — and police officers — to the front door of a single beleaguered homeowner in Las Vegas. Each of the unexpected visitors – Sprint customers all — has arrived absolutely convinced that the man has their phone. Not so, police confirm. The same thing happened in New Orleans in 2011 and Sprint got sued. Says the Las Vegas man: 'It's very difficult to say, 'I don't have your phone,' in any other way other than, 'I don't have your phone.''"

32 of 298 comments (clear)

Would a yard-sign help? by mekkab · 2013-01-15 04:52 · Score: 4, Insightful

Something along the lines of "Yes, the tracker says your Phone is here. No, it is not. Please call SPRINT at 1-800-xxx-xxxx" Lo-tech, but effective.

--
In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
1. Re:Would a yard-sign help? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-15 05:04 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Actually, not very effective since they don't have their phone.
2. Re:Would a yard-sign help? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-15 05:18 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  First, rage is taking over at this point. They're missing their precious shiny. And, as far as a computer's told them, you have it. Thus, what would normally be impotent rage is now focused rage: They now "know" that you've got their precious, precious shiny! Do you seriously expect them to stop and read a lowly yard sign as they advance on your home with crowbars and torches? Even worse if that yard sign is contradicting the word of an all-knowing, completely logical, infallible computer? A computer just like their missing pet shiny?
  Second, as others have pointed out, they don't have their phones. They can't call Sprint.
3. Re:Would a yard-sign help? by oddjob1244 · 2013-01-15 05:20 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Please call SPRINT at 1-800-xxx-xxxx
  Telling people, who are looking for their lost phone, to call a number, might not be the most effective tactic. =)
4. Re:Would a yard-sign help? by arth1 · 2013-01-15 05:52 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  It's not a great picture, but
  
  I found a better picture.
5. Re:Would a yard-sign help? by icebike · 2013-01-15 06:39 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  According to TFA there is now a sign on his house to that effect.
  If I was stealing cell phones, I'd put that sign up too.
  
  --
  Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
i would sue by alen · 2013-01-15 04:52 · Score: 5, Interesting

it has been over a year and sprint can't fix the problem
a nice letter to their legal department may move things along
1. Re:i would sue by plover · 2013-01-15 05:06 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  He could offer to move to a nicer house in a nicer part of town, and sell his house to Sprint. Better, he could offer to sell his house to AT&T and let them open a ATT Wireless store in his house - after being screwed by Sprint, perhaps their frustrated customers would be looking for a change.
  
  --
  John
2. Re:i would sue by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-15 05:24 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Nah, too complicated.
  He should start actually stealing phones.
Sucks to be him by kenh · 2013-01-15 04:53 · Score: 4, Insightful

While frustrating for him, from the outside looking in, it's kinda funny. No matter what he does to assert his innocence, it will appear as lies to the owner of the missing phone...

--
Ken
1. Re:Sucks to be him by hattig · 2013-01-15 04:57 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  It's funny except that it's taking a lot of his time, it must be extremely stressful, the fact that people turn up at any time must be affecting his sleep, his mental state, and so on.
  And that's before someone turning up possibly gets violent.
  And their costs to get there. Why are they going? Because the police refuse to deal with stolen phone cases even where there is a GPS signal, so people go out on their own or with mates to reclaim their property.
  Quite clearly this problem needs a solution very soon before something bad happens.
2. Re:Sucks to be him by berashith · 2013-01-15 04:58 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  For a long time I had a deadbeat using my phone number while obtaining lines of credit. The collectors would start calling and asking for her, and there was nothing that I could say to them to convince them that I did not know her, she did not live at my house, had never lived at my house, etc. It looks like lies no matter what, and these arent people who are willing to actually follow the laws about harrasment. They bothered me enough that I was ready to hunt her down for them.
3. Re:Sucks to be him by h4rr4r · 2013-01-15 04:59 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  The police doing their job seems to be the best solution. This seems pretty common though. A friend once reported a theft from a vehicle and the police were annoyed he made them fill out a report when he did not have insurance for this. They literally did not even want to collect basic information that could be used to monitor the number of crimes occurring much less attempt to catch the perpetrators.
4. Re:Sucks to be him by VAXcat · 2013-01-15 05:16 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  The same thing happened to me, and the anti harassment laws were useless to help. Here's why - the anti harassment laws only protect the person they are looking for. Since you are not the person they are looking for, they can call your number as often as they like - you can't request they stop, since you aren't the person with the debt. Only the person they are trying to collect from has any protections under the law. Calls to the police and the state Attorney general's office yielded no help at all. Begging and pleading, reason and logic, they fell on deaf ears - these people were going to call three times a day and there was no way to stop them. I even tried imitating the person they were looking for, in order to invoke the law telling them to stop calling, but my deep voice couldn't produce a realistic woman's voice (the deadbeat was female). I finally had to forward my calls to a non-working number for a week. The "doo-doo-DOO you have reached a number that is not in service" message they got when they called convinced them I had changed my phone number and they couldn't call me anymore....
  
  --
  There is no God, and Dirac is his prophet.
5. Re:Sucks to be him by geekoid · 2013-01-15 05:20 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Probably less want and more man power issue.
  and the vast amount of 'stolen phones' are lost phones.
  You see this same thing with wallets as well.
  Interesting story: in 1989 there was a string of pickpockets in Reno. So the police started keeping certain areas under surveillance.
  There were no pickpockets. There where people leaving the casino, literally through their wallet away and often injuring there face in some manner.
  Upon questioning these people, it turned out they didn't want to tell their spouse they lost all their money in the casino.
  
  --
  The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
6. Re:Sucks to be him by pauls2272 · 2013-01-15 05:31 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  No. Your wrong. The max you can get is controlled by the FTC. The max is quite small - like $500. Then Good Luck ever collecting that even after you "win".
  This is assuming you can get them to 1. Identify themselves, 2. Give you a real address (not a PO box) so you can spend $50+ on a server to serve them after you file suit in small claims court. Most would hang up once I asked for them to identify themselves and give me a real address.
  Then there are the larger companies that not only spoof the caller id but use a record-a-call wanting you to call back and give a incident number to. When you do that, the debt collector will claim they are no longer bound by the FDCPA ( Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) because THEY didn't call you, you called THEM.
  I had the exact situation the OP had. I moved, got a new number and was then inundated with phone calls from collectors. Even telling them that this was my new number didn't really help. Debt Collection was a "growth industry" in the 90s. There are lists of deadbeats that are produced monthly that you can buy and start calling in your own "startup collection" business. So I was constantly getting new collection agencies calling me about the deadbeat.
  The only way I got them to stop, was when I switch phone providers (I went from Cox to AT&T), I LISTED my number. Now my number was published and no longer appearing as the deadbeats number in the newest Deadbeat lists. The number of collection calls I received dramatically dropped. From getting 2-3 per week, I've got maybe 2 all last year.
  Oh, I also filed a large number of complaints with the FTC - I'm sure this did nothing as I never heard 1 thing from the FTC about any of my complaints.
7. Re:Sucks to be him by mark-t · 2013-01-15 05:43 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  Whether you are the debtor or not, collection agencies are required, by law, to honor all C&D requests that are submitted to them, in writing. After they receive the C&D, they are permitted to contact you only once more, and the purpose of that communication is to advise you of their next course of action. If they do not respect the C&D, contact the FTC and your state Attorney General, and advise them that the collection agency has broken the law.
  If the agency refuses to give the information necessary for you to send them a C&D in writing, then this falls under the same category as a caller who refuses to identify himself, and if such calls persist without such identification, then it qualifies as full-on telephone harassment. The police can be notified in this case.
  
  --
  File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
8. Re:Sucks to be him by AmiMoJo · 2013-01-15 05:54 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  I set up a 9.99/minute premium phone line and give that out to my creditors. They soon stop harassing me.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
9. Re:Sucks to be him by Todd+Knarr · 2013-01-15 06:02 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  That would be incorrect. See Section 806 of the FDCPA, 15 USC 1692d, which begins "A debt collector may not engage in any conduct the natural consequence of which is to harass, oppress, or abuse any person in connection with the collection of a debt.". There's also a kicker in section 805(b), which prohibits a debt collection from communicating with any third party without the consumer's consent except for the specific purposes described in section 804 on locating the actual consumer. So yes, the FDCPA provides remedies and protections for people other than the consumer.
10. Re:Sucks to be him by BattleApple · 2013-01-15 06:16 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Once someone came into the parking lot where I work, smashed my window and took my gps unit. I didn't have insurance either. I was pretty impressed with the response from the police though. They even sent a detective to collect a blood sample where the guy cut himself when he broke the window. While we were at my car, they got a call from the police in the next town, about 5 miles away, and they had caught some guys going through another car in a Walmart parking lot and they had a bag full of GPS units.
  I identified my unit at the police station, then they had to hold it for evidence.. for 3 and a half @#$&% YEARS!! Court systems sucks.. the cops were pretty cool though
11. Re:Sucks to be him by taustin · 2013-01-15 06:21 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  That simply isn't true. Only the debtor can send a C&D under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. But anybody can send a C&D for any reason to any one at any time. Anti-harassment laws have nothing to do ith FDCPA.
  The difficulty is that debt collectors who call on the phone will always be out of state, and you have to sue them in their location, which means small claims it out. You'll have to hire a lawyer, pay thousands of bucks in legal fees you have no hope of recovering, and probably not be able to collect the actual judgement because most debt collectors have nothing to sieze anyway.
  Better to just convince them they're wasting their time. Make it clear that a) you're not afraid of them, because you know how powerless they are, b) you're going to waste as much of their time as you possibly can, thus costing them money, and c) you're going to be the biggest abusive prick you can possibly be over the phone, because they can't do anything about it.
  You might also start screening your calls with an answering machine that says "All calls will be recorded. By staying on the line to talk to a live person, you consent to being recorded." They hate court-admissible evidence.
12. Re:Sucks to be him by AlphaWolf_HK · 2013-01-15 06:24 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  I went on a police ride-along once. Pretty fun job IMO, I would have done it if I didn't have eyesight issues. Anyways, some of the BS they have to put up with is just that: BS.
  One incident we went to was some lady who had some Italian man profess his love to her, and they got engaged two days later. He couldn't afford a ring, so she bought the ring, an expensive one too. He says he needs to take it to a jeweler to do some sort of adjustment, and then disappears with it for good. She doesn't know his real name, only what he told her what it was, and a vague description of what he looks like. Not a whole lot of information to go after, but her and the rest of the public expect the police to actually be able to do something about it.
  Another incident was an alarm on somebody's home security system. The officer told me that 99% of the time they are false alarms. Nonetheless, him and a few other officers had to go through the regular routine of pistols drawn, slicing the pie, and all of that jazz (since the owner wasn't home - also ever since columbine, regular cops now have to go through at least some SWAT training and engage a potential hostile situation accordingly, whereas before they would dispatch special officers to do that.) Huge waste of time, but it is obligatory anyways.
  Resources are finite, and the police are constantly busy. They can't be arsed to take every little issue seriously. Some people wonder why the police will take a long time to show up at the scene of an accident when there is no injury involved, but will show up quickly if there is fighting or if somebody is injured. If it is an emergency, they'll drop something else they are doing (which is every bit as deserving of their attention) to handle the emergency instead.
  Here's what I mean by that: Any one incident that the police officer has to deal with that requires any formal documentation requires about an hour worth of paperwork to do, even if the incident itself only lasted about a few minutes. Paperwork being figurative, because it is all done on a computer they have in their car; so you can imagine just how much stuff they have to write and detail. Take that false alarm for example. I used to think that a police car parked at the side of the road was just a cop watching for people speeding. Not so. That is typically a cop sitting there doing his paperwork. You could fly past at 60 and he wouldn't notice you.
  I've been pulled over all of four times in my life, and all four times the officers had a perfectly valid reason to give me a ticket but didn't because they really didn't want to deal with the hassle of doing so.
  One time I got pulled over for passing over three lanes while making a right turn when I got off work. The officer pulled me over because he thought I might have been robbing the store, until he saw me wearing the uniform (he had this "oh" look on his face when he saw that.) He asked me for my license and registration, and I didn't have my registration (another ticket there.) He told me not to worry about it and sent me on my way. Easily something the state could have made a $300 profit on, but he didn't want to bother. And it's pretty obvious why: when I pulled out, there was no traffic for miles, so it wasn't exactly an unsafe maneuver that he was prepared to split hairs over.
  Another officer pulled me over for one of my headlights not working. Again, easy ticket, but chose not to write it up. I told him I was aware of it and was waiting for one of the headlights to arrive via mail (which was true.) He just wanted to make sure I was aware of it and that it was being dealt with.
  I had an expired plate and was driving to get something to eat on new years evening. Cop pulled me over and asked where I was going. I gave him my license and registration, he said my plates were invalid (huge fine for that) but let me go because he was looking for drunk drivers, and didn't want to spend the time writing paperwork on me when he could have been looking for drunk drivers. He just told me to
  
  --
  Careful with names containing L slashdot.org/~AiphaWolf_HK slashdot.org/~AlphaWoif_HK slashdot.org/~AiphaWoif_HK
Business Opportunity by PPH · 2013-01-15 04:53 · Score: 5, Funny

Open an Apple store there. Sell iPhones. The people showing up are inevitably short a phone.
I'm surprised Apple hasn't patented this yet.

--
Have gnu, will travel.
Re:I don't get it by h4rr4r · 2013-01-15 04:57 · Score: 4, Insightful

Is it vigilantism for me to knock on your door and peacefully ask if you have seen my phone?
To me it seems no different than when religious folks or girl scouts knock on my door. Well other than I don't have your phone, am not interested in your myths, and would like one box of thin mints and one box of samosas.
Re:We need more guns by knarf · 2013-01-15 04:57 · Score: 4, Funny

If everybody had a gun, this would not be a problem. ;)
If everyone had a gnu, this would not be a problem.

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--frank[at]unternet.org
A better response by cellocgw · 2013-01-15 04:59 · Score: 4, Funny

"These aren't the GPS coordinates you are looking for."
(Well, that's better than, say "Imagine a Beowulf cluster of people looking for lost phones")

--
https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
1. Re:A better response by vlm · 2013-01-15 05:39 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  All our guided-weaponry would bombard some random address, probably a good, wholesome family of 5.
  Yeah as if that doesn't happen all the time already
  
  --
  "Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
Re: Not for the first time by Dupple · 2013-01-15 05:02 · Score: 4, Funny

I skimmed the submission, it rang a bell, I searched it, submission on front page, I pasted and Wham! Instant tit head!
Thems the breaks

--
Watch those corners
New business plan! by frank_adrian314159 · 2013-01-15 05:05 · Score: 5, Funny

I'd start stealing phones. How would Sprint know the difference?

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That is all.
Re:I don't get it by Wookact · 2013-01-15 05:08 · Score: 4, Insightful

Yes, and the angry people are going to say thank you and walk away. Completely believing your story. These people are not like your average girl scout. They are mad, and they want their damn phone back. They will not be walking away when you give them your polite response. You thinking so, means you haven't thought this through.
Ill Advised by sycodon · 2013-01-15 05:17 · Score: 5, Insightful

I would be ill advised for anyone tracking a phone to go to the address and accuse the occupants of having it.
There are many possible outcomes, most are less than optimal.

--
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
Re:I don't get it by arth1 · 2013-01-15 05:28 · Score: 4, Informative

Is it vigilantism for me to knock on your door and peacefully ask if you have seen my phone?
Read the original article.
This is clearly not what is happening.
And even if you should ask politely and during polite hours, unlike the people this man has encountered, you would be taking the law into your own hands and accusing him of lying if you rang his doorbell over this despite the clear note he has put up outside his home.
Part of the problem is that people use technology they don't understand. Sprint isn't pointing out his home as the address where the phone is. It's a triangulation starting point, with an error margin of several hundred feet in all directions.
tl;dr: The real victim isn't the yobo who lost his phone.