Q: What if I cannot find the owner of the iphone. I'm from the phil and my aunt just gave this iphone 4s from canada she had picked from their street. How can I activate it? Should I surrender this instead in the apple store here in the phil? Help pls

If you find a lost device, I would advise that you contact the carrier. If there is a SIM card in the iPhone, the carrier's name is probably written on it.

If would also advise you to contact law enforcement. If the iPhone was reported as lost and the person who lost it provided the serial number, the police will be able to give them back the iPhone.

If you still cannot find the original owner, you should know that the iPhone can be locked in three different ways :

- Passcode lock : This is a security feature to protect data saved on the iPhone. You'll need to erase it : https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204306

- Activation lock : This is a security feature to prevent thieves from activating stolen devices. Unfortunately, it also goes for lost devices. You can find out if it's locked right here : https://www.icloud.com/activationlock/ If this is the case, the iPhone's previous owner is the only one who can unlock the iPhone, sorry. Unless they sign in to their Apple ID and remove the iPhone from their account, you won't be able to use it. There is no much point in leaving the phone to Apple as they won't be able to use it either. Maybe the local police can keep it.

- Carrier lock : A carrier locked the phone to their network. You can contact the carrier to ask them to unlock the iPhone. There can be a fee for this.

Of course, the iPhone can be locked in all three of those ways. The only one you cannot get over without the original owner is Activation lock.

Please dispose of the device responsibly by sending it for recycling.

Yeah, I may have neglected that very important detail.

iPhones are the same in every country. I would first check the Activation system just to see if there is Activation Lock, because if there is, the rest doesn't matter, you are not going to be able to use the iPhone. If there is not, maybe your aunt could call the carrier for you and see if they'll unlock it? Because once the carrier unlocks it, it doesn't matter where you are, you can just follow that : How to unlock your iPhone for use with another carrier - Apple Support

A carrier won't unlock a phone that you are not entitled to.

I'd say it largely depends on the carrier, but it's true that they may refuse if you are not the person who bought the phone from them.

It is entirely legal in many countries to have someone else than the carrier unlock your phone for use with another networks. Many websites and electronic stores do it. I don't know if it's legal in the Philippines, though.

...the owner needs to sign in its apple id

That is activation lock, dispose of the device responsibly by sending it for recycling.