Id always wanted to go to India.
So I was pretty outraged when, in 2011, my iPhone went without me.
I think its only fair to place around 5 percent of the blame on my friend Blair.
Now this one isreallynice…
I was drunk, is what Im saying.
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Whatever it was, by the time I turned around, my phone was gone.
I bought a new iPhone and seethed at myself for weeks.
It wasnt until a few months later that I got my first email from Sachi.
It read:
Hey Erica this is Sachi from India.
I have purchased ur iPhone which u had used previously.
So Im having problems in downloading apps…. hey mail me if u can…..
Thank u
I was shocked.
This guy had my phone, clearly had my contact details, and now wanted my password?
How useless is a locked phone, really?
Its not necessarily useless from a third-party point, says Ian Heritage, cybersecurity architect at Trend Micro.
I dont noe who sold it cuz my dad bought it and Im only 16….
Oh.
I put down my nunchucks.
U live at London rite???
All ur personal info was there in the fone…
I deleted it so dont worry….
But wer did ur fone get stolen??
It was stolen from my bag in London, I typed back.
Still, I told him, I hope you enjoy the phone.
Heyy, he replied, thanks a lot for the info…. Ur sweet.
But the connection from London to Mumbai seems strange….I feel guilty using your phone now… Really.
Can I help u in anyway??
And by the way my dad surely wudnt have purchased it if he knew..
The seller is not a thief cuz there is always a long chain.
Nevertheless can we stay in touch thru mail???
But, I reply, this surely couldnt count as phishing though, could it?
The go-to is software with templates that look like real Apple emails with a Google maps interface.
I think my phone was passed across the world in the cheapest way at every stage.
I think Sachi was just who he said he was.
I dont think he was phishing; I think his dad got poor customer service.
Im guessing considerably less than I spent on a new one.
I emailed to say Id started a masters degree and was planning to be a writer.
He said I definitely should come to Mumbai someday and offered to be my tour guide.
The last email I got from him brought us full circle:
Guess what?…
the iPhone got stolen again, in a cab.
Whoever got it never wrote to him.
This article was originally published byErica BuistonMedium.
