Porch Pirates Accessed FedEx and Telecom Data to Steal iPhones
(Bloomberg) -- Thirteen people were charged for their alleged role in intercepting logistics tracking data to steal thousands of iPhones and other expensive devices from people's doorsteps across the US.
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An international criminal network accessed logistics and telecommunication company data to work out when smartphones and other gadgets were being shipped, allowing members to send 'porch pirates' to steal the packages, Acting US Attorney Vikas Khanna of the District of New Jersey said Wednesday.
Some of the defendants, who were either based in the Dominican Republic or the US, allegedly siphoned package information from a tool FedEx Corp. and telecommunication companies use to exchange data between apps and services. Some bribed employees at an unidentified telecom company to obtain confidential information about customers including orders, names, tracking numbers and delivery addresses, according to the US Attorney's office.
The allegations underscore how criminals are using technology to propel petty theft into organized campaigns across the country. The total losses are difficult to quantify but are estimated to be millions of dollars, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be named as the investigation is ongoing.
'With bad actors growing increasingly sophisticated, the shipping industry has been proactively working with law enforcement to address the rise of porch piracy,' a FedEx spokesperson said.
Two of the defendants ran a makeshift logistics center out of a home in the Bronx, New York, where people brought stolen devices for sale, sometimes in bulk deliveries, according to prosecutors. Some of the defendants traveled around the country selling Apple Inc. or Samsung Electronics Co. smartphones or other gadgets, they said. The defendants — whose involvement span obtaining and selling the delivery information to stealing the packages — face maximum penalties ranging from 5 years to 20 years' imprisonment.
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