i want to buy a second hand ipad but how to know its not a stolen ipad?

Hello Maria Isabelfromaustin and welcome to the Apple Support Communities! You shouldn't buy it from a third party dealer (like craigslist or something). You should try to buy one on Ebay or Amazon because, they both have pictures of the product and a guarantee if the product is stolen. I also think that Target, Walmart, Apple (themselves), and Best Buy sell refurbished iPads at a discount.This http://vmblog.com/archive/2016/06/23/how-to-tell-if-a-used-phone-is-stolen-and-w hy-you-should-care.aspx#.WJ-9gBIrJTY may also help you. I hope this helps!

Link does not go to site where stolen status can be checked.

There is no such database maintained by Apple or other entity.

Site does give link that formerly could be used to check status of

Activation Lock, but that link is no longer valid and Apple no

longer provides a method to check Activation Lock since that information

was used used for illegal purposes.

Really when buying any consumer product used, the only protection you can have is to buy from trusted sources. There really is nobody out there tracking information and providing it to the public on stolen personal property.

If you buy from sources you inherently cannot verify, like Craig's List, then you take your chances. Even eBay has more than its share of rip offs and scams listed on it, but at least you have a central authority, eBay itself, to seek recourse from if there are problems.

So stick to sources you have trust and confidence in, and which at least provide some guarantee or recourse if a deal does not go as it should or a received item is not as advertised.

Quite honestly, IMO, you are best served, if you or your livelihood actually depend on your smart phone or tablet, buying from Apple or an Apple Authorized Reseller (Apple does have some Apple refurbished iPhones in its own refurbished online store, at least in the USA).

Hi. Saifan Pilot has posted a very comprehensive discussion of this here Re: Activation lock won't recognise correct Apple ID.

http://www.zdnet.com/article/buying-a-second-hand-iphone-or-ipad-heres-how-to-ch eck-it-has-not-been-stolen/

Obtain the serial number and enter it here:

https://checkcoverage.apple.com/

<sigh!> More security, I guess it is a good thing, though. Thanks for pointing this out.

There's a good guide here:

What-to-do-when-buying-second-hand-ipad

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