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Apple Makes It Harder for Bad Actors to Stalk Strangers Using Its GPS Tracker

Apple has finally announced a series of changes whose main goal is to make it harder for bad actors to use an AirTag for other purposes than the one it was meant for.
Apple AirTag 6 photos
Photo: Apple
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The company’s GPS tracker was built from the very beginning with a clear goal in mind: help track your belongings, such as the car keys or the wallet. However, stalkers and criminals turned to the device to keep an eye on their targets and monitor their location by hiding the GPS tracker in places where it’s nearly undetectable.

In the last few months, law enforcement across the States warned on several occasions that people who believe they are tracked by strangers and think they may be in danger must dial 911 as soon as possible.

And because this is a serious issue, Apple has come up with a series of updates meant to protect these potential targets.

First and foremost, the Cupertino-based tech giant emphasizes it always works with law enforcement on finding the bad actors who do such a nefarious thing as stalking and tracking strangers. Because the AirTag requires an Apple ID, Apple can provide owner information to the police, and the company says it already did that in cases that led to the perpetrator being apprehended and charged.

Going forward, the AirTag will get new privacy warnings during the initial setup to clearly emphasize the purpose of this device. Then, Apple says it’s updating the support documentation and addressing the alert issues for AirPods to make it clearer when an AirTag is detected, therefore dropping the confusing “Unknown Accessory Detected” alert.

Later this year, Apple will allow iOS users who receive an alert they may be tracked to manually make the AirTag ring, therefore being able to locate it easier. Furthermore, Apple will also use a louder tone for this purpose.

Apple is also introducing Precision Finding that will allow the owners of new iPhones to more accurately detect the location of AirTag. And when an alert is displayed on a mobile device, users will be allowed to play the sound once again or, if the device has been tampered with to be silent, to trigger Precision Finding.

Overall, Apple is indeed making the AirTag much harder to use for malicious purposes, so it’ll certainly be interesting to see if criminals once again manage to circumvent all these updates.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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