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One family's public appeal to Apple has brought attention to an unexpected subject as the death toll from the devastating Nepal-Tibet border floods continues to rise: can the location data on a missing person's iPhone help find them when every other trail has gone cold?

Ankur Patankar, a Frontend Engineer at Palantir, posted an urgent appeal on LinkedIn saying his parents, Satish Vinayak Patankar and Rekha Satish Patankar, have been missing since August 26 following the floods in the Timure and Rasuwagadhi area along the Nepal-Tibet border. His post claims that the couple was travelling to the Rasuwagadhi-Gyirong (Kerung) border crossing while on the Kailash Manasarovar pilgrimage when the accident occurred. Since then, the family has not communicated with them.

The post's unique, technological argument to Apple is what sets it apart. Patankar stated that both of his parents had iPhones and that he was not requesting that Apple circumvent its own privacy safeguards or provide him with personal customer information. Rather, he made a more specific request: Apple should immediately assist with the Nepalese and Indian authorities investigating the matter to see whether any legally accessible data connected to his parents' devices or Apple services may provide a clue as to their location. He pointed out that what he called a huge search area might be narrowed by even a last known connection or any other information Apple is legally allowed to provide to authorities.

In his message, he specifically mentioned Apple execs Tim Cook, Craig Federighi, Eddy Cue, and John Ternus, requesting that if the appeal reached any of them, it be forwarded to Apple's emergency or life-safety team.

A Look At Viral LinkedIn Post

In order to maintain user privacy in situations like domestic disputes or coercion, Apple maintains stringent, long-standing policy against providing user data upon informal request, even from family members. Nonetheless, Apple has procedures in place for providing specific information to government agencies and law enforcement upon legitimate legal requests; this is the exact channel that Patankar's appeal is directed toward. In order to ensure that any legally shareable information, like a last known network connection, can reach investigators through the appropriate channel, his post specifically refrains from requesting Apple to circumvent privacy protections. Instead, it asks the company to proactively coordinate with the Indian and Nepalese authorities already involved in the search.