AirTag: Everything you need to know about Apple’s item tracker

AirTags are small trackers to help you locate any lost or stolen belongings. However, concerns of people using AirTag for nefarious purposes has led Apple to come up with a notification alert. This alert is to discourage people from tracking you without your consent. Using Apple’s Find My network, you can detect and locate nearby unknown AirTags using your iPhone.

Muc-Off, an English bicycle accessory maker, has created a holder for Apple’s AirTag that fits into a bicycle tire. Called the Stealth Tubeless Tag Holder, an AirTag can now go inside the rim of a mountain or gravel bike tire.

For the last year, AirTag has been helping Apple users alike track their lost or stolen items. However, some have been using the tracking device for more nefarious purposes. A news station in Ohio has found a loophole in a law that allows tracking people with electronic trackers. 

AirTag can be a simple and cost effective way to recover any lost or stolen items. One Australian man just found this out over the weekend as he searched for $7,000 worth of stolen photography gear. 

Apple has made quite of bit of progress in its efforts to improve the anti-stalking and privacy features of its AirTag item trackers. This is despite the fact that AirTag launched with a set of anti-tracking features more sophisticated that similar products on the market.

A new report from the Wall Street Journal dives into a phenomenon it refers to as “phantom AirTag alerts” that “send iPhone users on wild goose chases.”

Graduation season is upon us. Whether graduating from high school, college, or trade school, Apple surely has a gift for everyone. These items are helpful for those continuing their education, but those entering the workforce may benefit from these as well. While there may be new items unveiled at WWDC 2022 next month, these are products you can buy right away for your favorite graduate.

During a day of roaming the Magic Kingdom, a Tennessee family unexpectedly received a notification that an unknown AirTag was among them. While walking to their car, Jennifer Gaston’s teenage daughter got an alert on her iPhone stating an AirTag was moving with her. 

Apple this week released a new AirTag firmware to users, but details about the update were unknown. However, the company has now confirmed that the latest AirTag firmware (version 1.0.301) enhances the unwanted tracking alert.

Seven months after releasing AirTag’s latest firmware update, Apple is now seeding a new version to owners of the item tracker. Here’s what you need to know about this new version.

Since Apple introduced AirTag last year, multiple interesting stories related to the item tracker have been shared on the web. This time, a man who lost his luggage during a wedding trip used AirTags and a PowerPoint presentation to ask the airline for his bags.

Apple offered key AirTag anti-stalking measures when it first launched its tracking devices, and has since offered two rounds of improvements. AirTags unequivocally offer better protection against misuse by stalkers and thieves than any other device on the market – and that’s something we’ve continually stressed.

However, it’s equally undeniable that AirTags have brought a whole new level of awareness to the very existence of small and affordable trackers, and that awareness has increased the risk. So I think it would be beneficial for Apple take additional anti-stalking measures – and here are a few of our ideas …

The AirTag stalking controversy, which forced Apple to beef up the protections offered against misuse of the tracking device, has led Tile to follow the Cupertino company’s example.

Tile has announced a Scan and Secure feature, which allows anyone to check for the presence of its own trackers – though in a clunkier fashion than Apple’s safeguards …

Update: Chipolo has reached out to us with the following statement:

“The Find My network protects everyone’s privacy and Apple has spent a great deal of time designing protections against unwanted tracking that discourage bad behavior, even alerting users if an item that is not theirs is following their location. These protections are built into the Find My-enabled Chipolo CARD Spot as a requirement to be part of the program. The recent updates Apple made for Airtag are not yet applied to 3rd party accessories in the Find My network.”

AirTags can be an especially helpful device to help you find lost items. But, after its debut last spring, many people worry the tracking device is an effective stalking tool as well. Apple has put privacy at the forefront of its design and has adapted to improve anti-stalking features amid concerns. 

Apple on Tuesday released the fourth beta of iOS 15.4 to developers, which comes ahead of the rumored special event early next month. As promised by the company, today’s beta adds anti-stalking alerts to AirTags and other Find My accessories.

AirTag stalking concerns continue to be voiced, despite the fact that Apple’s tracker is the least suitable one on the market for anyone with malicious intent.

One campaign group is calling for all companies making Bluetooth trackers to cooperate in the development of new safety measures, and a university is conducting a study designed to assess the scale of the problem …

Apple last week announced a number of changes coming to AirTags and the Find My network to combat unwanted tracking and stalking. Despite these promised changes, New York Attorney General Letitia James has issued a new warning urging New Yorkers to be on the lookout for “malicious Apple AirTag users.”

Following Apple’s announcement of new AirTag and Find My changes to address stalking concerns, a new story from The New York Times offers a deep dive into this situation. The report explores using AirTag, Tile, and a standard GPS tracker for nefarious purposes – and it really shows how much more advanced Apple’s prevention features are.

In response to growing concerns about AirTag and the Find My network being used for unwanted tracking and stalking, Apple has announced a handful of changes coming over the course of this year. The company reaffirms that AirTag “was designed to help people locate their personal belongings, not to track people,” and these forthcoming changes aim to make that clear.

When AirTag first hit the market last year, one common question was whether Apple’s tracker could work as a tracker for dogs, cats, and other pets. Now, the first Find My-compatible dog tag has officially hit the market, but there are a few things to keep in mind before attaching one to your furry friend.

Apple’s AirTag item trackers have made a lot of headlines since their launch last April, for both good reasons and bad. Now, CTInsider reports that a man in Waterbury, Connecticut has been arrested after trying to use an AirTag to “track a victim’s car” as part of a “domestic incident.”