苹果正在为旗下零售店部署一种新的检测设备，旨在防止消费者利用退货流程实施欺诈。借助这套设备，店员可以在不拆开 iPhone 零售包装的情况下，扫描包装内的手机并运行诊断程序，确认设备是否仍然完整，从而减少库存损失，并让符合条件的退货商品更快重新进入销售环节。
据彭博社记者马克·古尔曼在最新一期《Power On》通讯中透露，苹果近年来面临越来越多与商品退货有关的欺诈问题。一些消费者购买 iPhone 或其他苹果产品后，会拆走包装内的配件、打开设备取出内部零部件，甚至直接拿走整部手机，然后重新封装包装并申请退款。他们希望零售店员工无法及时发现包装内的商品已经缺失或遭到拆解。
过去，苹果零售店员工在处理 iPhone 退货时，通常需要打开包装，逐一核实手机和配件是否齐全。即使外包装看起来完好无损，店员也可能需要拆封检查，以避免将空盒、缺少配件的商品或遭到拆解的设备重新放回库存。
这种做法虽然能够帮助识别欺诈，却也带来了额外成本。一旦商品包装被打开，即使检查后确认手机没有问题，也可能需要经过额外的仓储和处理流程，才能重新作为未拆封商品出售。对于销售规模庞大的苹果零售网络而言，这不仅增加了员工的工作量，也会影响库存周转效率。
新设备的目的就是解决这一矛盾。按照古尔曼的说法，店员可以利用设备扫描包装内的 iPhone，并运行诊断程序，检查手机是否完整。如果检测结果正常，零售包装就可以继续保持密封，商品也有机会直接重新进入库存，而不必因为例行检查而被拆封。
苹果已经从本月开始向部分零售店提供这套设备，相关设备正陆续投入使用。不过，苹果尚未公开其具体技术规格，也没有详细说明诊断程序究竟能够检查哪些内部组件，以及设备如何识别手机被拆解或部件被移除的情况。
这套新系统与苹果此前推出的 Presto 技术存在关联。Presto 是苹果为零售库存设计的一套设备，能够在不打开包装的情况下，为盒内 iPhone 安装软件更新。这样一来，苹果可以在手机交付消费者之前，让设备运行较新的系统版本，同时保留原有的密封包装。
Presto 通常采用类似柜体的设备，一次可以容纳多部 iPhone，并通过近距离无线通信等方式与包装内的设备交互。此前公布的信息显示，一轮软件更新通常需要约15至30分钟。苹果此次推出的检测设备则将类似的封装内操作思路用于退货验证，但其具体硬件结构和检测原理尚未对外披露。
这也意味着，苹果正在尝试让零售环节中的更多操作摆脱拆封流程。对于软件更新而言，设备可以在包装保持完整的情况下完成系统准备；对于退货检查而言，设备则希望确认手机是否存在缺失或异常，同时避免不必要地破坏商品包装。
不过，新设备并不意味着苹果已经能够在任何情况下完全排除退货欺诈。包装内检测的具体能力仍取决于诊断程序可以访问的设备信息，以及手机是否能够正常启动和响应。如果设备遭到严重损坏、无法通信，或者存在诊断系统无法识别的异常情况，店员仍可能需要进行进一步检查。
目前，苹果尚未公布这套检测设备的全球部署时间表，也没有确认它是否会扩展到 iPad、Apple Watch 或其他产品。现阶段，相关报道主要聚焦于 iPhone 退货检查流程。
从零售运营角度看，这项技术的价值不仅在于防盗，也在于减少商品检查带来的额外成本。苹果可以在维持较严格的退货审核流程的同时，尽可能避免将正常商品拆封，从而提高库存管理效率。对于消费者而言，如果退回的商品能够更快完成验证，正常退货的处理流程也可能更加顺畅。
随着高价值电子产品的转售市场不断扩大，零售商需要面对越来越复杂的退货欺诈方式。苹果此次尝试利用设备诊断技术检查密封包装，体现出零售防损正在从人工开箱核验，逐步转向自动化检测。不过，这套系统最终能够减少多少欺诈损失、覆盖多少门店，以及能否用于更多产品类别，仍有待苹果进一步披露相关信息。
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Apple is deploying a new detection device to the retail stores under the flag, aimed at preventing consumers from using the return process to commit fraud. With this set of equipment, shopkeepers can scan mobile phones in packaging and run diagnostic procedures to confirm that the equipment is still complete, thereby reducing the loss of stock and allowing eligible refund commodities to re-enter the sales chain more quickly.
According to a recent issue of the Power On newsletter of Bloomberg journalist Mark Gülman, apples have been facing increasing problems of commodity-related fraud in recent years. When some consumers buy iPhone or other apple products, they remove the parts in the packaging, open the equipment to remove the internal parts, or even take the whole mobile phone directly, then repackage the packaging and apply for a refund. They hoped that retail workers would not be able to discover in time that the goods in the package had been missing or dismantled.
In the past, employees at Apple Retail had usually had to open their packagings and verify the integrity of their phones and accessories on a case-by-case basis when processing iPhone returns. Even if the overpack appears intact, the shopkeeper may need to unseal the boxes to avoid re-placing empty boxes, goods lacking spare parts or dismantled equipment.
While this approach can help identify fraud, it also entails additional costs. Once the package is opened, even if the mobile phone is checked to be clear, it may need to undergo additional warehousing and processing processes before it can be re-sold as unopened. For the large distribution network of apples, not only increases the workload of staff but also affects stock turnover efficiency.
The purpose of the new equipment is to resolve this contradiction. According to Gourman, shopkeepers could use the iPhone in the device to scan and run diagnostic procedures to check the integrity of the mobile phone. If the results are normal, retail packaging can remain sealed, and there is an opportunity to re-enter the stock directly without having to be dismantled for routine inspection.
Apples have been providing the equipment to some retail stores since this month, and the related equipment is being put into operation. However, apples have not yet disclosed their specific technical specifications, nor have they given details of which internal components can be examined by the diagnostic procedures, and how the equipment recognizes that mobile phones have been dismantled or parts removed.
The new system is linked to Presto technology that Apple had previously launched. Presto is a set of equipment designed by apples for retail storage to install software updates for iPhone in boxes without opening the packaging. In this way, apples can run a newer version of the system before mobile phones are delivered to consumers while retaining the original sealed packaging.
Presto usually uses a container-like device that can accommodate multiple iPhone at a time and interacts with the equipment in the package, for example, through close-range wireless communication. Information previously published indicates that a software upgrade usually takes about 15 to 30 minutes. The Apple detection device, which was launched on this occasion, uses similar containment lines for return verification, but its specific hardware structure and detection principles have not yet been disclosed.
This also means that apples are trying to get more operations in the retail chain out of the process. For software upgrades, the equipment can complete the system preparation while the packaging is complete; for return checks, the equipment wishes to confirm the existence of missing or unusual mobile phones while avoiding unnecessary disruption of the packaging of goods.
However, the new equipment does not mean that apples have been able to completely exclude return fraud under any circumstances. The specific capability of testing in packaging continues to depend on the equipment information accessible to the diagnostic process and whether the mobile phone is properly activated and responsive. If the equipment is seriously damaged, communication is impossible, or if there are anomalies that cannot be identified by the diagnostic system, the shopkeeper may still need to undergo further inspection.
At present, Apple has not published a global deployment schedule for the test equipment and has not confirmed whether it will be extended to iPad, Apple Watch or other products. At this stage, the report focuses mainly on the iPhone return inspection process.
From the point of view of retail operations, the value of this technology lies not only in preventing theft, but also in reducing the additional costs associated with commodity inspections. Apples can increase the efficiency of stockpile management by avoiding, to the extent possible, the unsealing of normal commodities while maintaining a more rigorous process of repossession clearance. For consumers, normal return processing may also be smoother if returned commodities are able to complete their certification more quickly.
As the resale market for high-value electronics expands, retailers have to face increasingly sophisticated means of returning goods. This attempt to check sealed packaging using equipment diagnostic techniques reflects the gradual shift of retail protection from manual to automated testing. However, the extent to which the system could eventually reduce the loss of fraud, the number of businesses covered and the availability of additional product categories still required further disclosure from Apple.
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