TikToker’s Theft Recovery iPhone Hack Discussion Sparks

A TikToker’s viral theft recovery iPhone hack sparked controversy in the comments about whether knowing the location of a stolen device is useful if there’s no way to get it back.

Creator, Katrina Audrey (@katrinaforeal), shared a photo of herself iPhone theft story and guided users step-by-step on how to locate your iPhone even when the device is turned off. His video received more than 11.5 million views.

“You have to do this iPhone hack in case your phone was stolen because your phone rang last night, and I got it back,” Katrina says. She adds that she learned the hack from @ she.inspection technology on Instagram.

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“The first step is to go to Face ID and Passcode, you want to turn off Control Center and USB Accessories,” Audrey explains. “Turn on Location Services, find my iPhone and make sure you have all three turned on. [she’s referring to Find my iPhone, Find my Network, and Send Last Location]”

This operation requires the user to log in to another. iOS devices Remotely manage their stolen iPhones settings from secondary device with their Apple ID and then for this method to work.

Katrina continues, “This ensures that your phone is discoverable even when it’s turned off or in airplane mode. Whoever stole my phone last night was literally out all night.” He then shows a screenshot of a map of Chicago showing the path his phone took through a series of steps.

“Look at what they’ve been through in the city of Chicago,” he says. “Southside, Northside, they’re finally back in Gurney, Illinois. This is the address they have, nice little place, right?” TikToker later showed an image of the house that allegedly housed his stolen iPhone.

Katrina called the Gurney Police Department and gave them her home address. She said the police went to the house and took her phone.

this FCC reports that 68% of phone theft victims ultimately fail to recover their stolen device. “The truth is, whether your smartphone is white, black, or gold, it’s now worth almost 30 times more per ounce than a block of silver — and it’s almost as easy to sneak into cash,” the agency said.

Despite Katrina’s clues, many TikTokers have expressed that they are having trouble recovering stolen phones and items from their local police department. The comments section was filled with criticism, or rather lack thereof, of the business officials involved in obtaining these stolen items.

“The fact that the police actually listened and went to the scene made me suspicious,” one user said. “The police told me directly, “and?” said. When I tell them where my phone is.

“This is crazy because when I called the police here in San Francisco and told them I knew exactly where the house was, they said take it as a loss,” another said.

A third said, “It’s good that the police department is helping.” When I tracked my husband’s iPhone, the police drove us away from the neighborhood because it was dangerous.”

One user said they took matters into their own hands and avoided any bureaucratic action. “This just happened on my phone a week ago,” they wrote. “But I didn’t call the police, I just came home.”

Some folks were a little confused as Katrina’s TikTok went through the step-by-step directions pretty quickly. Commentators came to the rescue.

One user wrote, “Settings > Face ID & Passcode > Control Center & USB OFF, Privacy > Location services ON, then Apple ID > Find My > Find My iPhone ALL TURN ON”.

Another said, “Use someone else’s phone and sign in to find my iphone with your apple id then all your apple devices will be shown”.

The Daily Dot reached out to Katrina on TikTok for more comments.

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