Find My iPhone

I was having lunch with our project team yesterday in a Beltsville, MD restaurant Saturday and got a phone call on my personal iPhone. After taking the call, we finished lunch and drove back to the project site. I then realized I did not have my iPhone. I began calling my iPhone with my work iPhone to listen for the ringtone. I searched the vehicle I used, looked around the site, and had not luck. I concluded that I must have left the iPhone at the lunch location.

I was fortunate to have my work iPhone with me, so I could use the 'Find My iPhone' app. Sure enough, I located the phone at the restaurant. I drove back, spoke to the manager and went right to the table where I had been sitting. The people at the table were unaware, but my iPhone was laying face down, under the table. It was too loud in the restaurant for anyone to hear the ringtone in that position. I picked it up and showed the folks at the table how the app was used to find the phone. They were amazed. I was happy and relieved out the outcome of this adventure.

Today, I found a story in the New York Times about the potential danger of chasing down a stolen iPhone. This was something that crossed my mind as I drove back to the restaurant. What would I do if I noted that my iPhone was moving away from the restaurant? My first inclination was to follow it. I also thought about calling the police, but was not sure about how much of a priority they would put on it's recovery. How would I confront the thief?  Would I be putting myself in danger?  I'm glad it didn't come to that.  Next time I need to be more mindful of what I do with the iPhone after a call in a public place.