Apple says how it will protect us against AirTag abusers

There have been numerous reports of people abusing AirTag

Apple has announced plans to prevent bad people using AirTags to do bad things such as spying on spouses or tracking expensive cars for theft. The company says it wants devices that use its FindMy system to be used for good things, such as keeping tabs on your stuff. (And while that is a problem, on other tracking devices it’s far, far worse).

Apple condemns malicious use

“AirTag was designed to help people locate their personal belongings, not to track people or another person’s property, and we condemn in the strongest possible terms any malicious use of our products,” Apple said.

The company has faced a slew of complaints as stories have emerged of people abusing AirTag to do bad things. “We also have seen reports of bad actors attempting to misuse AirTag for malicious or criminal purposes,” it said.

So the company is doing something about it.

Apple had already designed some mitigations against abuse, but these don’t seem to be enough and the company now promises more to come. It has been working with law enforcement and other groups to identify how to put protections in place.

New protections coming soon

The following updates will be the most immediate new protections:

• New privacy warnings during AirTag setup: 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 AirTag is designed to be detected by victims, and that law enforcement can request identifying information about the owner of the AirTag.

• Addressing alert issues for AirPods: We’ve heard from users who have reported receiving an “Unknown Accessory Detected” alert. We’ve confirmed this alert will not display if an AirTag is detected near you — only AirPods (3rd generation), AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, or a third-party Find My network accessory. In the same software update, we will be updating the alert users receive to indicate that AirPods have been traveling with them instead of an “Unknown Accessory.”

[Also read: 5x AirTags secrets we probably need to know]

• Updated support documentation: Apple has also updated its unwanted tracking support article on apple.com to communicate the safety features built into AirTag, AirPods, and Find My network accessories.

Additional protections coming later in 2022

Later in 2021, Apple will introduce additional safeguards. The company doesn’t say it, but these feel like they may be included in the next iteration of its OS releases, but it could emerge before:

• Precision Finding: This capability allows recipients of an unwanted tracking alert to locate an unknown AirTag with precision. iPhone 11, iPhone 12, and iPhone 13 users will be able to use Precision Finding to see the distance and direction to an unknown AirTag when it is in range. As an iPhone user moves, Precision Finding fuses input from the camera, ARKit, accelerometer, and gyroscope to guide them to the AirTag through a combination of sound, haptics, and visual feedback.

• Display alert with sound: When AirTag automatically emits a sound to alert anyone nearby of its presence and is detected moving with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, we will also display an alert on your device that you can then take action on, like playing a sound or using Precision Finding, if available. This will help in cases where the AirTag may be in a location where it is hard to hear, or if the AirTag speaker has been tampered with.

• Refining unwanted tracking alert logic: Our unwanted tracking alert system uses sophisticated logic to determine how we alert users. We plan to update our unwanted tracking alert system to notify users earlier that an unknown AirTag or Find My network accessory may be traveling with them.

• Tuning AirTag’s sound: Currently, iOS users receiving an unwanted tracking alert can play a sound to help them find the unknown AirTag. We will be adjusting the tone sequence to use more of the loudest tones to make an unknown AirTag more easily findable.

And a warning to abusers — we can find you

One more thing: A warning to AirTag abusers

Apple also pointed something else out – that AirTag abusers can be identified.

“Every AirTag has a unique serial number, and paired AirTags are associated with an Apple ID,” Apple explains. “Apple can provide the paired account details in response to a subpoena or valid request from law enforcement. We have successfully partnered with them on cases where information we provided has been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator, who was then apprehended and charged.”

Apple has identified additional improvements we can make in the information we share and the educational resources we provide, and “we will be taking action, including making updates to our law enforcement documentation,” the company said.

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