Find my iPhone bug sends hordes of strangers to Houston House
If you lose your iPhone in greater Houston area, don’t show up at Scott Schuster’s house and expect to get it back. The resident of the city Richmond suburb says he doesn’t have it: no your phone, not anyone someone else’s. But that fact hasn’t stopped Apple Maps from directing a huge number grumpy strangers to his doorstep for years, according to multiple reports.
Via the “Find My” phone tracking app and Apple Maps, a small technical error has caused big problems for Schuster, who first reported by local ABC News affiliate KTRK. People looking for their missing iPhones and attempts to use Find My to hunt them down have been, time and time again, mistakenly sent to the software engineer’s house since he first moved there in 2018, according to KTRK.
“There are a lot of irrational people if they’re angry, drunk, had a rough night and lost their phone and thought it was stolen,” Schuster told the newspaper. His biggest concern? “Ssomeone potentially coming to his house with a weapon,” he said. So far, fortunately, that has not happened. But still, doorbell camera footage reportedly shows several frustrated strangers on Schuster’s stoop asking for their devices.
“The police are on their way, so you might want to talk to me before they get here,” a resident was recorded saying on camera, per KTRK. “I lost my cell phone and I clicked Find My iPhone and it says it was at this address,” another explains on camera.
G/O Media may receive a commission
$32 discount
The Hair Revitalizing Complex complete set
Fight hair loss with science
Right now you can get The Hair Revitalizing Complex Full Set for the price of a Refill. That’s just $98 for a 30-day supply, and $32 off the supplement’s regular price. This supplement is proven to deliver results. Augustinus Bader conducted a six-month double-blind study that found that those who received the supplement had an increase in hair count by 56%, hair shine by 100%, and saw a 98% reduction in hair damage compared to those who took a placebo.
Although nothing has been proven yet, the Texan technologist has his own theory as to why his address appears as a lost smartphone exchange. His house was a model home for his neighborhood when it was first built. Next, Apple Maps appears to have assigned every home in the neighborhood to one single shared address: Schusters. Wherever a phone is located within his suburban area, Apple’s apps combine to suggest it at his home.
He told KTRK, Inside Editionand Apple Insider that he has contacted Apple support through several avenues to try to get the mysterious issue resolved. So far the company has not fixed it. In an Instagram post seen by ABCSchuster said he was considering filing a lawsuit against the company.
Gizmodo reached out to Apple to confirm the Schusters accounting and for more information. The company did not respond at the time of publication. If Apple offers a response, this post will be updated.
Schuster’s saga is not the first time Apple Maps has had direction problems. Way back in 2013, the navigation app led people to drive onto an airport runway.
