Word: theft
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...stolen, but complicated Czech proof-of-ownership laws render them almost powerless to prosecute. And in a country where almost 11,000 cell phones were reported stolen in the first eight months of last year, the police seem equally helpless to prevent the crimes. "How can you stop the theft of something that you can hide in the palm of your hand?" asks Miroslav Moulik, head of Prague 1's police unit specializing in pickpocket crime...
...statistics are unsettling. In Am-sterdam last year, mobile-phone theft rose by 80%; in the U.K., it jumped almost 200% from 1995-2000. The fact that lots more people now use mobile phones helps account for some of the increase. But police in many countries believe reported thefts represent only the tip of an increasingly dangerous iceberg...
...years, stories of cell phones being swiped from tabletops or the hands of distracted users have hit the headlines. But recently, the problem has taken a new and nasty turn, with statistics showing that cell-phone theft is not only rising, it also is becoming more violent. In response, lawmakers have vowed to use everything from tough new sentencing laws to modern technologies to deter cell-phone thieves. But there remains a disquieting feeling that operators and handset makers are dragging their feet, focusing more on revenue from calls and future sales (victims need to get new phones) than customers...
...Dutch are using a more innovative technique for discouraging cell-phone thieves. In Amsterdam, police spam stolen cell phones with short message service (SMS) technology. When a victim reports a theft, police take the number and send an SMS message every three to five minutes to the stolen phone. It says: "You are in possession of a stolen cell phone. Did you know that stealing a cell phone is a crime punishable by imprisonment? Using a stolen cell phone is too, and you are risking a prison term of one year...
...strategy has been so successful - driving theft down by 50% - that in mid-February Rotterdam police adopted it as well. But not everybody is happy. Civil libertarians question the legality of police obtaining cell-phone numbers without a warrant. And while sending SMS messages is free for the Dutch police, it is not free for Dutch service providers - some of which have declined to participate...