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Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

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Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#91

Post by throwaway290 »

amazingamazing wrote: post #83
ruined wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah, but they do nothing to stop a locksmith in a fugue state from rekeying all the bolts to match the neighboring property and vice-versa, and then the realtor can walk right in, and you're locked out! so it's better to just leave the door open.

You’re proving the other persons point - the reason why the a thief doesn’t trivially pick locks isn’t because of the lock, it’s because it’s illegal and there’s a consequence.

Yes it's illegal and there's a consequence but do you care about it after you've been robbed?

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#92

Post by anonymousiam »

WatchDog wrote: post #90
anonymousiam wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On a related topic, I've opted out of Google's BLE tracking/repeating feature. Apple provides no way to do this. The extra battery drain is significant and measurable, and I did not sign up for this when I purchased my devices. https://support.google.com/android/thread/284190689/how-to-o...

You can disable it on iPhone by: Go to: Settings → your name → Find My → Find My iPhone Toggle “Find My network” → OFF It should be noted that this will also disable your ability to find your own airtags.

Turning this off doesn't necessarily stop your phone from participating in the "Find My" network, it just prevents your items from being seen. Your phone will continue to relay BLE/UWB traffic for others, and run down your battery more quickly.

Turning off Bluetooth seems to disable the traffic, but then you can no longer access your local Bluetooth devices.

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#93

Post by zxcvgm »

ale42 wrote: post #63

Half-related question: the chip on the board looks like an STM32 microcontroller, wouldn't a 6-pin 8-bit PIC10 or similar µC be sufficient and cheaper for the purpose? And possibly use less power, a PIC10F322 in sleep mode with the watchdog timer enabled is around 0.5 µA, while a small STM32 is more in the 100 µA range in the best case.

Probably. Or something like the TPL5110 might actually suffice, purpose-built timer for power gating at 35nA, but only goes up to 2hr at max.

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#94

Post by amazingamazing »

throwaway290 wrote: post #91
amazingamazing wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re proving the other persons point - the reason why the a thief doesn’t trivially pick locks isn’t because of the lock, it’s because it’s illegal and there’s a consequence.

Yes it's illegal and there's a consequence but do you care about it after you've been robbed?

You could say the same with a lock. Do you care once it’s broken?

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#95

Post by ale42 »

zxcvgm wrote: post #93
ale42 wrote: post #63

Half-related question: the chip on the board looks like an STM32 microcontroller, wouldn't a 6-pin 8-bit PIC10 or similar µC be sufficient and cheaper for the purpose? And possibly use less power, a PIC10F322 in sleep mode with the watchdog timer enabled is around 0.5 µA, while a small STM32 is more in the 100 µA range in the best case.

Probably. Or something like the TPL5110 might actually suffice, purpose-built timer for power gating at 35nA, but only goes up to 2hr at max.

Nice, didn't know this one! This combined with a PIC10 without watchdog timer might also be an interesting combination to do more complex things. Or perhaps simply a TPL5110 with a ultra-low-power flip-flop (does it even exist?) used as a divider to get to 4 hours.

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#96

Post by HenryBemis »

somanyphotons wrote: post #77
anonymousiam wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like tags, locks are also deliberately encumbered so that locksmiths and law enforcement can easily defeat them. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5jzHw3lXCQ

Are there people out there who sell locks that aren't purposefully bad?

People like Microsoft?

https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/28691191/Why-did-...

EDIT: Like in the hotels, you got a key for your room, but the hotel management has a "passpartout" key (for back in the day when we had physical keys). The phrase " must accept interference, but not cause any". So you/we must be able to receive the 'punch' and not resist.

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#97

Post by gsck »

_aavaa_ wrote: post #61
mulmen wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. The product in this case relies on unintended functionality in a specific firmware version of an Apple device that is specifically designed to not be suitable for this application. In this case it is the add-on device that is not offering refunds if it stops working.

Yes. > if it stops working. It doesn't magically stop working though, it would be apple explicitly putting in effort to break this functionality and forcing you to update a device you own, forcing you to use it only how they want you to use it.

https://xkcd.com/1172/

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#98

Post by throwaway290 »

amazingamazing wrote: post #94
throwaway290 wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes it's illegal and there's a consequence but do you care about it after you've been robbed?

You could say the same with a lock. Do you care once it’s broken?

The point of a lock is that it's something to break. That takes skill and visible equipment. The more skill yoo require the more likely the smart guy would do better things to earn money than crime. the more visible equipment the easier it is to track.

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#99

Post by andygeorge »

bigstrat2003 wrote: post #89
andygeorge wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yup. it unfortunately works well in the gun industry

And you can use hammers to brutally murder people as well as to drive in nails. You can use a screwdriver to grievously wound someone besides using it to repair your glasses. The fact that a tool can be used for bad things does not negate the good things it can be used for. Nor does it mean that the maker is responsible if someone chooses to use it for bad things.

'the gun' by cj chivers is an excellent read, i suggest checking it out

Re: Show HN: Undetectag, track stolen items with AirTag

#100

Post by _aavaa_ »

mulmen wrote: post #67
spuz wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where do you get the idea that Apple specifically designed the AirTag to not be suitable for a third party device to control when it switches on and off? I can understand how they might not approve of this adaptation to their product but I don't see any reason to believe they specifically designed against it.

The AirTag is specifically designed to not be used to track people without their knowledge.

Is that why it released it with built in integration in android so that android users automatically are notified of tags following them?

Or is that why the tag flashes and makes sounds frequently so that people without phones can know they’re being tracked?

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