Smart use of an AirTag

TidBITS Talk
1

Smart cookie.

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2

I wonder if the AP used an AI to generate this story because there are some things that seem strange to me…

  • If mail was being stolen from a United States Postal Service location, wouldn’t the United States Postal Inspection Service have jurisdiction, not a county agency?
  • To me, repeated theft of mail seems much more likely at a private business’ postal boxes (for example, at a UPS Store that relies on hourly workers not career employees) or from an apartment building or tract house community with centralized mail boxes for residents.
  • I don’t think the thefts of USPS master keys in many cities would affect PO Boxes located at a USPS location because the boxes are not designed to be opened all at once from the front, as in apartment buildings (right?).

In any case, I’m thrilled that the thieves were caught!

3

I agree, it’s a poorly constructed story. I also have a hard time believing that cops would care at all, let alone get a warrant on the basis of an AirTag.

4

Well… it’s an interesting approach to take if anyone has similar issues.

Here’s the Santa Barbara Police account - Mail Theft Suspect Apprehended Using AirTag – Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office

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The AP story appears to be a paraphrase of the post by the Santa Barbara Sheriff. It very well could have been AI-generated, or a simple rewrite by a novice reporter.

But yes, it is interesting. To me it suggests another route for investigation if the Postal Inspectors are receiving complaints about a particular location.

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