Question: how often are passports specifically targeted? I would think not very often, but I must admit I don't know.

This thread reminded me of losing my passport in Rome just about a year ago. I lost it on a Friday somewhere between work and my hotel. (I hate that I need my passport to access the facilities, but the situation is the same when foreigners come to my institution. So who am I to complain? ) The trip between work and central Rome involves a bus ride and a long trip on line A. I think that my passport probably just fell out of my backpack, but I never have ruled out someone sneaking a hand into an open pocket on my backpack and pulling out my passport. Again, I would think that a stolen passport would be of limited use to a thief, but crimes of opportunity do happen.

Needless to say, I am much, much more careful about my passport now. And I always tell people that the most important way to prepare for a lost passport isn't having a copy of the old one or anything like that, it's knowing where the local embassy is!