Let me remind you again to record your unboxing videos.

Juli Clover from MacRumors:

The U.S. Department of Justice recently cracked down on an international crime ring that targeted expensive electronics like the iPhone, with the workings of the complex crime system detailed in a report from The Wall Street Journal.

Thirteen members of an international network worked to steal FedEx shipments of iPhones from people's porches, using automated scripts to scrape data from FedEx tracking systems and also bribing corrupt employees from AT&T. The employees took payments to share confidential customer information from a company order tracking system, snapping images of customer names, addresses, and tracking numbers.

Some members of the criminal network obtained and sold delivery information, while others, called runners, purchased that info and physically stole the ‌iPhone‌ packages from doorsteps just minutes after they were delivered.

I didn’t have a porch pirate steal my Apple Watch Ultra 2 that I had shipped from Best Buy, but it was already stolen when it was returned to Best Buy. I bought one in “Open Box Excellent” condition and when I unboxed it, there was no watch inside, even though it still had the pull tabs on it as if it was sealed. You can read about my full experience, but just know that even if your package does manage to make it to your hands, do yourself a huge favor and record your unboxing experiences so you can prove your innocence. Thankfully the Apple Watch band comes in a separate box from the watch, and I was able to record the band unboxing which proved I wasn’t the culprit.

In another instance just a few days later, I ordered a brand new iPhone SE from Apple directly and it came through FedEx. The packaging was suspect. If you order directly from Apple, you know that the shipping box is catered towards the product you’re receiving, and even the shipping box has pull tabs on it similar to the product packaging itself. You never need a knife or have to muscle your way into the box.

Never.

This package had regular clear tape on it, and the piece of tape with the pull tab was tucked underneath the flap, making it useless and showed either signs of tampering, or someone who didn’t apply the tape correctly and decided to put regular tape on it.

I wasn’t taking any chances and decided to record the unboxing experience. This time I wasn’t missing anything, but the question still remains: was someone trying to steal the iPhone and decided it was too risky and just sealed it back up with regular tape, or did someone just improperly put on the pull-tab tape and decide to fix it with some tape? Either way, take a look at what I’m talking about but please record your unboxings.