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An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

apple.com

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Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#21

Post by r00fus »

post_break wrote: post #13

Just keep nerfing it Apple. They made the beeps louder with this new update too. So every time my wife borrows keys, my car, etc it's gonna go nuts. I guess I'm going to have to rip the speaker coils out of all of them at this point.

TBH sharing keys is a nightmare even without airTags. Honestly recommend each spouse gets their own key to each vehicle. Once my wife had her keys stolen and we made do for a year sharing my car key and it was hell (because both of us prefer the EV to the minivan).

I don't track keys but I track my wallet and my wife does not need or ever ask for that.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#22

Post by theshrike79 »

karaterobot wrote: post #9

> In an upcoming software update, every user setting up their AirTag for the first time will see a message that clearly states that AirTag is meant to track their own belongings, that using AirTag to track people without consent is a crime in many regions around the world That really should do it. I mean, in the unlikely event that a message to first time users doesn't solve the problem of people being stalked using…

They can just install an app if they're worried about being tracked by AirTags: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apple.trac...

Just remember to add the Tile app too, it does the same thing.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#23

Post by writeslowly »

> We hope this starts an industry trend for others to also provide these sorts of proactive warnings in their products.

I guess they're hoping Tile (or whoever else) will feel obligated to create similar nerfs or annoyances on their trackers? I thought this was interesting because this is one time vertical integration (having a huge network of iPhones) is putting an Apple product at a competitive disadvantage

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#24

Post by mmastrac »

isoprophlex wrote: post #16

Are airtags still useful for eg. tracking a stolen bike? Or will it now alert the thief within minutes that the bike contains a tracker?

I don't think you can simultaneously limit unwanted tracking and still track thieves surreptitiously. Basically both are "unwanted tracking" by the "victim".

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#25

Post by 6sp »

r00fus wrote: post #21
post_break wrote: post #13

Just keep nerfing it Apple. They made the beeps louder with this new update too. So every time my wife borrows keys, my car, etc it's gonna go nuts. I guess I'm going to have to rip the speaker coils out of all of them at this point.

TBH sharing keys is a nightmare even without airTags. Honestly recommend each spouse gets their own key to each vehicle. Once my wife had her keys stolen and we made do for a year sharing my car key and it was hell (because both of us prefer the EV to the minivan). I don't track keys but I track my wallet and my wife does not need or ever ask for that.

Luckily keys are on the way out. Between a August Smart Lock and a Tesla I haven’t carried keys in years and I don’t miss that nightmare.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#26

Post by throwntoday »

Syonyk wrote: post #18

> ...and we condemn in the strongest possible terms any malicious use of our products. Then subject them to malicious users before releasing them to see what sort of ideas they can come up with in a few days, and mitigate those before general release. Go schedule a room at Defcon, give people AirTags, and see what they do. If they neutralized your mitigations in an hour, well... other people can figure that out too.…

To what extent is any hardware manufacturer responsible for malicious usage of their product in your opinion? Surely you don't believe that all bases can be covered no matter how simple the product prior to launch. I credit Apple for making a best effort at launch and continuing security and support for much longer than the industry standard in their products. But realistically there is no way to launch something flawless as you seem to be suggesting.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#27

Post by FireBeyond »

post_break wrote: post #13

Just keep nerfing it Apple. They made the beeps louder with this new update too. So every time my wife borrows keys, my car, etc it's gonna go nuts. I guess I'm going to have to rip the speaker coils out of all of them at this point.

Or just buy them on eBay, pre-silenced.

I'm really not exactly sure what happened here in this "update", other than "FYI, we'll give out information after being subpoenad" and "we'll also include a dialog to say "don't track people with these"."

"So, basically nothing, then?"

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#28

Post by teruakohatu »

Gys wrote: post #19
cyral wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is an Android app which allows Android users to see the same notifications.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apple.trac... With 100.000+ installs it seems only a very small percentage of Android users is aware or cares

Look at the reviews. It doesn't seem to work. It requires manual scanning and does not work in the background.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#29

Post by tssva »

darkwizard42 wrote: post #2

These feel like welcome changes. Don't think it addresses all the past concerns.

It addresses none of the key past concerns. Specifically the ability for the devices to operate with their speakers disabled and no effective means for non-iPhone users to detect they are being tracked. The Android app Apple released is basically useless since it requires manual scanning.

Re: An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking

#30

Post by eternityforest »

writeslowly wrote: post #23

> We hope this starts an industry trend for others to also provide these sorts of proactive warnings in their products. I guess they're hoping Tile (or whoever else) will feel obligated to create similar nerfs or annoyances on their trackers? I thought this was interesting because this is one time vertical integration (having a huge network of iPhones) is putting an Apple product at a competitive disadvantage

This kind of scares me. Privacy first tech groups seem to be getting more vocal about trying to change the whole industry.

I hope someday we have a fully open global tracking network, not affected by Apple an Mozilla and all the rest who seem to want to destroy any technology that can be used to invade privacy, regardless of how many legitimate uses it has.

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