People identifying themselves as representing Apple last week visited and sought permission to search the Silicon Valley address of the college-age man who came into possession of a next-generation iPhone prototype, according to a person involved with the find.

"Someone came to [the finder's] house and knocked on his door," the source told Wired.com, speaking on condition of anonymity because the case is under investigation by the police. A roommate answered, but wouldn't let them in.

Apple's vaunted wall of secrecy was smashed wide open when one of its developers lost a next-generation iPhone prototype sometime in March at a bar in Redwood City, California. Another bar patron took the phone home and, having failed to find the owner, gave tech news site Gizmodo exclusive access to the device in exchange for $5,000. Gizmodo eventually returned the phone to Apple, but not before it published numerous photos and details.

San Mateo County police are now investigating, and they seized computers from Gizmodo writer Jason Chen's home last week under a search warrant that Gizmodo is challenging as unlawful. Police have also identified and interviewed the man who took the phone from the bar, the San Jose Business Journal reported Tuesday.

News of Apple's lost iPhone prototype hit the web like a bombshell, but it was apparently an open secret for weeks amongst the finder's roommates and neighbors, where the device was shown around mostly as a curiosity. According to the source, who has direct knowledge of the Gizmodo transaction, the group of friends suspected this might be Apple's new phone, but no one knew for sure.

"There was no effort to keep it secret," the source said. "There were a bunch of people who knew."

The finder attempted to notify Apple and find the owner of the device but failed, even going so far as to search alphabetically through Facebook, the source said. Thoughts then turned to contacting the press about the device to confirm its authenticity and help locate the owner, but early attempts to drum up interest went unanswered. After a few days with no response, the finder expanded the search.

"The idea wasn't to find out who was going to pay the most, it was, Who's going to confirm this?" the source said.

The finder at one point attempted to restore the phone by connecting it to a roommate's Apple computer, but was unsuccessful.

News accounts depicting the $5,000 payment as a "sale" are incorrect, this person said. Rather, the agreement with Gizmodo was for exclusivity only. "It was made very explicit that Gizmodo was to help the finder return the phone to its rightful owner or give it back," this person said. "Gizmodo said they could help restore the phone."

Wired.com received an e-mail March 28 offering access to the device, but did not follow up on the exchange after the tipster made a thinly veiled request for money.

Apple didn't return a phone call Tuesday.

See Also: