Makers offer little help for lost or stolen devices

Remember the story about the guy who tracked down his stolen iPhone with MobileMe?

All very well as long as he tracked the thieves down on his own, but this Times article says that most manufacturers aren't at all excited about helping customers who've lost devices.

Profiled is Samuel Borgese, who is pissed off that Amazon didn't lift a finger to help recover his Kindle - or at least "brick" it.

I finally concluded that Amazon knew the device was being used and preferred to sell content to anyone who possessed the device, rather than assist in returning it to its rightful owner.”

And Amazon's not the only one. Sirius XM says they only deactivate or provide information is response to a law enforcement subpoena. AT&T doesn't disable iPhones, just makes sure your account information isn't being changed.

If the concern is people reselling the devices and then reporting them as stolen, there's an easy enough fix, Borgese says. Just send an email to the original owner confirming a sale. The person would have to click OK for the device to function.

Amazon had no comment about this suggestion.