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I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

nytimes.com

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Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#21

Post by spywaregorilla »

tinalumfoil wrote: post #13

I hate this AirTag because besides being pointless (nothing you couldn't do before), it fosters a fear of your neighbor while placing tech companies as your trusted friends. There's no evidence these, "people have freaked out after finding AirTags hidden in their bags and on their cars" are anything other than just stray airtags their owners would very much like back. Just because police (or journalists for that matt…

I disagree. I mean yeah, obviously mistakes are mistakes, but I doubt many people are seriously suspecting anything else than that.

However, it seems unusual for people to be carrying around air tags in such a way that they are casually lost. I would guess mistakes aren't THAT common. I would guess domestic abuse is not an uncommon use case of these things. I would also guess that thieves do have an eye for it. You don't need to be Liam Neeson for someone to want to steal your shit. The alert that an air tag is following you mostly negates this.

I do agree they don't seem to have much utility on their own

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#22

Post by Cthulhu_ »

bberenberg wrote: post #4
ameminator wrote: post #3

Look, I usually try to be charitable. However, this article offered no new insight on Apple Airtags. If you don't want to waste your time, allow me to summarize: Woman puts Airtags in a car. Her husband isn't able to find them, even using Apple's "anti-stalk" features. Ergo, Apple needs to do more. I ask - what new insight did this article offer on Airtags? I don't think anyone can conclude either way on the effectiv…

I found the key quote to be "My husband, of course, had agreed to this in principle, but didn’t realize just how many devices I had planted on him. Of the seven trackers, he found only two: a Tile he felt in the breast pocket of his coat and an AirTag in his backpack when he was looking for something else. “It is impossible to find a device that makes no noise and gives no warning,” he said, when I showed him the one…

I mean for personal use, airtags seem all right. But it's the ones that don't come with a warning that they're around that worry me.

I mean if you're paranoid, I'm sure there's detectors that can find bluetooth signals and whichever other technologies they use (I'm fairly sure GPS is passive, that is, they only need to receive satellite signals, not send anything).

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#24

Post by fleetwoodsnack »

ameminator wrote: post #11
nooyurrsdey wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not everything has to offer new info. Sometimes things bear repeating, it's how we add emphasis and continue the conversation. Coming out with "Apple is doing a poor job" just once isn't going to move the needle. People have to hear it over and over in a relatable way.

Fair point - but in that case, I found the author's account unrelatable, so much as to approach uncredible. Maybe it hits different for other people, but I don't appreciate being given a conclusion without any good discussion

Your critique is bit shallow. That the article does not present any new information to any one reader (you) specifically, or that any one reader (you) cannot relate personally is to be expected and not remarkable given the size of this publication’s audience and the novelty of the phenomenon the article discusses.

I imagine, however, that there are readers for whom this information is novel, and for whom the first-person journalistic style is insightful. In this case, the value here is obvious.

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#27

Post by boopmaster »

rustybolt wrote: post #23

> All these people received warnings on their iPhones, a feature Apple had built into the AirTag system to help prevent unwanted tracking. So if you don't have an iPhone, enjoy being stalked!

I stalk iPhone users with Tiles

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#28

Post by jeromegv »

rustybolt wrote: post #23

> All these people received warnings on their iPhones, a feature Apple had built into the AirTag system to help prevent unwanted tracking. So if you don't have an iPhone, enjoy being stalked!

What are your plans regarding Tile and GPS trackers that provide no warnings? What was your opinion on it before the current hysteria, did that bother you?

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#29

Post by gwbas1c »

I often peek at my wife when she's coming home from work via our car's app. She knows I do this. (When my kids are with me they love watching the car move on the map. I hope she peeks at me when she's with the kids and I have the car.)

What made it funny one time was when I was between jobs, and she went to her gynecologist after work. Even though she told me, I forgot, and the map only showed that there was a divorce lawyer's office in the parking lot. I really needed a hug when she walked in the door.

Re: I used Apple AirTags, Tiles and a GPS tracker to watch my husband’s every move

#30

Post by tut-urut-utut »

xoa wrote: post #18
BeefWellington wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I ask - what new insight did this article offer on Airtags? I don't think anyone can conclude either way on the effectiveness of Apple's "safety measures" when it comes to Airtags, from this small anecdote. While I understand where you're coming from, I think there's value in adding to the chorus when it comes to putting pressure on a company to rethink a strategy. Certainly, while articles such as this may not be…

> The issue with AirTags at their core is that they permit people who are deceptive and shady to do bad things much easier than they could before. But that's just not true. Seriously, right now, go to Amazon and type in "GPS Tracker" and look at the results: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=gps+tracker Literally $30 gets you a 1oz cellular magnetized tracker you put a SIM into for real time tracking anywhere with cell cove…

I am with you on this, there were and are a lot of tracking alternatives. The issue is more that now, since Apple released AirTags, everyone just got aware of it. While previously one had to search for a solution how to track someone, now we have streamlined mainstream product with great usability for the purpose. Which is still a net negative for a society, and it's Apple's fault for popularizing such behaviour.
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