Frustrated victims of iPod theft often turn to Craigslist to post a message about the crime hoping someone may be able to help. The problem, the post on Craigslist usually expires within a couple of weeks. A new stolen property registry website hopes to help.
Stolen911.com allows anyone to post a free message just like popular classified sites. Users can post the typical information, what, when, where, reward, etc. Photos can be added and videos can be linked. The difference is that Stolen911.com lists the item for 1 year. This gives the listing plenty of time to be indexed by the major search engines like Google and Yahoo. If someone bought an iPod they think might be stolen, they can search Stolen911.com to see if its been listed or enter the serial number of the iPod in a search engine. The hope is the iPod’s serial number was listed on Stolen911.com and would be found by the search engine. If the iPod still has not been recovered when the year is up, the user can re-list the iPod for another year. If its recovered, the user can remove the post or tell the story of the stolen iPod’s recovery. Of course, the quality of each post is only as good and the information submitted. Entering the stolen iPod’s serial number is very important. (See related post on how to find your stolen iPod’s serial number on iTunes) A field is also available to list any special engravings the stolen iPod may have.
One more great thing about Stolen911.com is the website is searchable by everyone, not just law enforcement. Still, Stolen911.com suggests the following when your iPod is stolen…
• Get the serial number off your iTunes software if you don’t have it written down (How to)
• Make a police report
• Notify Apple
• List the stolen iPod on Stolen911.com
• List it on the internet as many places as possible, Craigslist, MySpace, Facebook, and other stolen property registry sites.
Other features of Stolen911.com include the ability for the user to leave as much or as little information as possible. Your email, phone numbers, etc won’t be displayed unless you allow it. Viewers can send an anonymous tip regarding a stolen item to Stolen911.com with out revealing their identity.
Stolen911.com is not just for iPods. Anything can be listed as stolen. Other popular stolen items include stolen pets, musical equipment, motorcycles, cars, gps devices, satellite radios, computers, etc. Best of all its FREE. List your stolen iPod here.