Would it be illegal to keep a phone that I found?
4 days ago I found an iPhone X in a coffee shop, I took it and I want to keep it because it's really nice and it didn't even have a passcode on it so I deleted everything on the phone and put my Apple ID on it, no one has called the phone or anything so would it be illegal to keep it and is there any way for them to track the phone down? I really want the phone.
In my state it is. I'm guessing most (if not all) states have a similar law.
Finders keepers is a child's game, not a legal principle.
What a rotten thing to do. How would you feel if you lost your phone and someone else took it? You should have turned it over to one of the coffee shop employees. They may have been able to track down the rightful owner by going through their contacts.
It's theft by finding. You can't legally keep this. It may already be on Apple's list of lost and stolen phones and any attempt to use it will give them the opportunity to hunt you down. Take it to a police station and hand it in.
You are not a good person, give it to the police
It's theft, pure and simple. If you attempt to take any photos with it, they may be transmitted by email to the phone's owner. He or she will then contact police. You need to turn it in at a police station in the jurisdiction where you found it, and do so quickly.
It is illegal plus it would do you no good when it is reported stolen and turned off.
Answer me this: you are in possession of something that is not yours without the permission or knowledge of the person who actually bought it and owns it, and you made no effort to try to find the rightful owner. Can you compare that situation to the definition of theft?
Yes it is illegal. In fact you broke ANOTHER law by LOOKING for anything other than information necessary to find the actual owner.
Each phone has it's own unique serial number which is linked to its "real" owner. You might want to take the phone to the local police department and turn it in before the police come to you.
In my state it is considered theft if you found it and removed it from the premises.
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