According to a new New York City Police Department report,  theft of Apple devices accounts for 14.4 percent of New York’s major criminal activity.

The numbers are shocking,  PCMag pointing out that there were 11,447 recorded thefts, all involving Apple devices, between January 1st and September 23rd of this year.

The rise in criminal activity as it relates to iPhones and iPad has jumped far faster than those of any other crime source in NYC: rape, murder, and other burglaries accounted for 79,335 isolated events, only growing 4 percent during this same period.

A New York Police Department spokesman said:

“The increase in incidents involving the theft of Apple products exceeded the increase in overall crime incidents of crime by 265. As if to mirror the market place, thefts of Apple products increased this year as the theft of electronics by other manufacturers decreased.”

Apple related incidents accounted for 204 percent of the 1 percent rise in burglaries, 160 percent of the 4 percent increase in burglaries, and 69 percent of the 9 percent increase in grand larceny cases.

To help combat the problem, the NYPD has launched a new campaign in conjunction with the release of Apple’s iPhone 5. The “Anti Apple Picking Campaign“, is part of the police department’s free device registration service.

Designed to aid in the retrieval of electronic devices, the campaign helps do so by recording the devices serial number, along with the owner’s personal information. The device may also be marked with a unique serial number, if the user so chooses, for easier identification if the device were lost or stolen.

Whatever keeps iOS devices in the hands of consumers and out of the hands of criminals is commendable.

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