iPod bandits targeting subways

You might want to hide that iPod. The ubiquitious music player with the telltale white headphones has caused a 20 percent spike in robberies on New York subways, the New York Daily News says.

The paper reported on Tuesday that the popular music device has become a favorite target for thieves scouting the trains for valuables.

New York subway felonies, overall, are up 14 percent through mid-March compared with the same period last year, according to police statistics, and underground robberies have shot up nearly 20 percent.

"The common denominator are iPods," NYPD Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne said. "They're expensive, extremely popular and easy to conceal after they're stolen."

But iPod-toting passengers are being targeted above ground, too. "iPods have made bus stops a choice location for purse snatching," the Daily News quotes a police source as saying.

Schools have also become a hotbed of iPod thievery, according to the article.

"Kids are shaking down other kids for iPods, but adult crooks like them, too," a source said. "Word is out that teachers wear iPods, so snatch-and-grabs are big around schools."

Oh, and while you're at it, gadget-carrying commuters, you might want to keep an extra-tight grip on your new PSP.