Why hide the serial number ?

[BradS]

Why do some people obscure the serial number of their camera or lens when posting a photo of it on-line?

 

[Kino]

Two possibilities spring to mind:

1. Most obviously, the equipment might be stolen or misappropriated in some way.
2. It only takes a make, model and serial number of an item to generate a false theft claim.

 

[AgX]

But this means that someone who wants to prohibit fraud just attracts suspicion. Thus it makes no sense.

 

[MattKing]

You can always offer to share the full serial number with a purchaser. This is aimed at those who would just steal thee image from the internet.

 

[logan2z]

I'm not sure about the camera world, but there are many fakes in the watch world (Rolexes being a commonly faked brand of watches), so sellers often obscure serial numbers so that makers of fake watches can't easily find (and reuse) the serial numbers of authentic watches.

I have heard of some fake Leicas being found but I'm not sure if fakes are very common in the camera world.

 

[BrianShaw]

Rolex... that’s one explanation... there’s another. There are so many fakes (and very realistic fakes) that dealers don’t want buyers or law enforcement to easily be able to verify real v fake via serial number verification. I’ve heard... Some dealers, even with real Rolex, are trying to mask the fact that they may not be the “authorized seller”. After the sale, of course, buyers can do whatever they do regarding product verification and I assume if a fake is verifiable that the dealer still holds liability.

in used cameras, it seems to me to be the same as folks not wanting to show their car license plate numbers even though it’s public information - privacy. Neither is a big deal to a buyer.

 

[AgX]

You can always offer to share the full serial number with a purchaser. This is aimed at those who would just steal thee image from the internet.

A faker could also inquire.

 

[AgX]

We have discussed here quite some gear where more or less important changes took place, to be identified by serial number.

 

[Ariston]

We have discussed here quite some gear where more or less important changes took place, to be identified by serial number.

I think this can usually be accommodated by sharing all but the last few digits, though there may be exceptions.

 

[BrianShaw]

... or as they do with social security and credit card numbers... only show the last four digits.

 

[MattKing]

A faker could also inquire.

Yes, but that would require individual contact.
Anonymous screen grabs are faster and simpler.

 

[BradS]

...

in used cameras, it seems to me to be the same as folks not wanting to show their car license plate numbers even though it’s public information - privacy. Neither is a big deal to a buyer.

I can understand obscuring the license plate numbers (although I very often find it comical how people do it). License plate number leads directly to the registered owner’s name and physical address and more insidiously to times and places where that vehicle has been..movement and patterns of.

Except for a thief not wanting to make his crime glaringly obvious, obscuring the serial number of cameras and lenses just seems weird/ silly / overly paranoid to me...which is why I asked. Just checking my assumptions.

 

[BradS]

... or as they do with social security and credit card numbers... only show the last four digits.

but this too is what I mean... saying the serial number is 7835xxx...why do people do that? What’s the risk of someone knowing the exact serial number of a Nikon F2 in my possession?

 

[MattKing]

but this too is what I mean... saying the serial number is 7835xxx...why do people do that? What’s the risk of someone knowing the exact serial number of a Nikon F2 in my possession?

They can file a fraudulent stolen property claim with the police and their insurer.
Which then ends up on the police database, so if you go to sell the camera....

 

[AgX]

I think this can usually be accommodated by sharing all but the last few digits, though there may be exceptions.

But this again a faker might use.

And for some camera models the serial number ranges per model are public.
And often there will be no one at a plant to verify if a certain number actually was applied.

 

[BradS]

They can file a fraudulent stolen property claim with the police and their insurer.
Which then ends up on the police database, so if you go to sell the camera....

but again, wouldn’t they be guilty of fraud?

 

[BrianShaw]

They can file a fraudulent stolen property claim with the police and their insurer.
Which then ends up on the police database, so if you go to sell the camera....

This is exactly what I concluded as the risk of showing full serial numbers. I have no idea why someone would go to such an action just to get a dumb camera. Yes, it’s fraud...

 

[AgX]

They can file a fraudulent stolen property claim with the police and their insurer.

I doubt that insurance companies pay that easy with expensive items just on serial-number base.

 

[BradS]

I doubt that insurance companies pay that easy with expensive items just on serial-number base.

no, they certainly will not.

 

[BrianShaw]

I doubt that insurance companies pay that easy with expensive items just on serial-number base.

I think the point was to file a false report to collect the “stolen property” rather than get paid a loss settlement.

 

[Kino]

I think the point was to file a false report to collect the “stolen property” rather than get paid a loss settlement.

That was what I meant. If anyone objects that this is a stupid idea, I direct you to any current news source to verify the possibility that such clueless people exist...

 

[AgX]

I think the point was to file a false report to collect the “stolen property” rather than get paid a loss settlement.

What do you mean by "collect the stolen property"? Collect from who?

 

[logan2z]

I think the point was to file a false report to collect the “stolen property” rather than get paid a loss settlement.

I'm no insurance or legal expert, but I've got to assume that one needs to prove they are the rightful owner of something before they can simply collect it based on a (falsified) stolen property report.

 

[BrianShaw]

What do you mean by "collect the stolen property"? Collect from who?

In the US, stolen property remains the owned by the original owner, not the possessor... even if the current possessor obtained it through legal purchase. So if someone’s able to concoct a claim, law enforcement or civil action can be taken to repatriate the stolen property with the rightful owner. In the case of a camera.. I can’t imagine anyone so desperately willing to take such fraudulent action. But such an accusation would seriously defame and inconvenience the victim of such fraud.

 

[Wayne]

They can file a fraudulent stolen property claim with the police and their insurer.
Which then ends up on the police database, so if you go to sell the camera....

Has this ever happened in the history of the world though? It would be extremely brazen if not insane to use the police and insurance to steal something, with an extremely low chance of success.