NYPD Has Apple Theft Division to Track Down Stolen Tech Devices

The New York City Police Department has teamed up with Apple to run a division devoted to recovering stolen iPhones, iPads, laptops and other portable tech.

"The theft of Apple devices is so rampant in New York that a team of cops has been assigned to work with the tech giant to get the stolen gadgets back," writes the New York Post.

"Every time an Apple device is stolen, detectives attempt to get tracking numbers from the victim or online records. That number, known as the International Mobile Station Equipment Identity, is then shared with the officers in Police Headquarters who pass it on to Apple."

Apple can sometimes trace a device when it is activated after the theft, even if it is registered to a different network.

The NYPD will even track devices taken out of the country. "One stolen iPad was tracked to the Dominican Republic and recovered with the help of an NYPD intelligence cop assigned to Santo Domingo," said the Post.

The department was formed in response to a spike in thefts of mobile devices in New York, which were up 40 percent last year.

The collaboration seems to be a shift in attitude for Apple, which developed a reputation several years ago for being relatively aloof when it came to stolen tech, leading the charges that the company was happy to have anyone using their devices and paying for subscription services, even if they were stolen.

As mobile devices become more ubiquitous, consumers are being warned to be more careful with their tech in public, especially when distracted by email, texting, Skype or Angry Birds. It might save your phone, or your life.