Photo: Apple
New York Attorney General Letitia James has recently issued a consumer alert to warn that Apple’s already-famous AirTag could sometimes be used by criminals for all kinds of nefarious purposes, including monitoring their targets’ locations.
The AirTag is, at least in theory, a great device. Coming in a very small form factor, it can keep track of your belongings, and using the Find My network, makes finding a wallet or the car keys just a piece of cake.
But bad actors out there rapidly noticed the nefarious potential of this little piece of technology, so they turned to AirTags for all kinds of harmful purposes, including keeping an eye on the location of their targets.
Apple’s GPS trackers, therefore, ended up being hidden in places where it’s pretty impossible to see, including behind the license plates of cars, in people’s purses, coat pockets, or sometimes right in their homes if the criminals found a way to plant them there.
New York Attorney General Letitia James provides a series of recommendations to make sure people are always in the know, including listening for unfamiliar beeping, keeping an eye out for notifications on iPhones and Android devices, and updating phones to the latest version.
Apple has already announced a series of measures to make the AirTag difficult to use for such nefarious purposes, and Letitia James tells New Yorkers to check out the updated guidance for more information.
The AG reminds that not all AirTags are malicious, as there are times when sometimes people actually lose their GPS trackers, attached or not to their belongings, so it’s important not to panic when coming across such a device.
However, if you believe that someone is using an Apple AirTag to monitor your location, you are recommended to contact the Office of the Attorney General by filing a complaint with the OAG Internet and Technology Bureau. Obviously, if you believe you’re in danger, you should also call 911.
But bad actors out there rapidly noticed the nefarious potential of this little piece of technology, so they turned to AirTags for all kinds of harmful purposes, including keeping an eye on the location of their targets.
Apple’s GPS trackers, therefore, ended up being hidden in places where it’s pretty impossible to see, including behind the license plates of cars, in people’s purses, coat pockets, or sometimes right in their homes if the criminals found a way to plant them there.
New York Attorney General Letitia James provides a series of recommendations to make sure people are always in the know, including listening for unfamiliar beeping, keeping an eye out for notifications on iPhones and Android devices, and updating phones to the latest version.
Apple has already announced a series of measures to make the AirTag difficult to use for such nefarious purposes, and Letitia James tells New Yorkers to check out the updated guidance for more information.
The AG reminds that not all AirTags are malicious, as there are times when sometimes people actually lose their GPS trackers, attached or not to their belongings, so it’s important not to panic when coming across such a device.
However, if you believe that someone is using an Apple AirTag to monitor your location, you are recommended to contact the Office of the Attorney General by filing a complaint with the OAG Internet and Technology Bureau. Obviously, if you believe you’re in danger, you should also call 911.
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