Washington Post: AirTag Anti-Tracking Measures Not Enough

The AirTags have been with us for just a week and there are not few reviews (including that of our colleague Luis Padilla) who have already indicated that AirTags that are not a device designed to locate people or even pets but, despite this, it seems that users continue to test these functionalities and now it is the Washington Post that is pronouncing itself on the matter. According to Geoffrey Fowler of the Washington Post, lPreventive measures for AirTags to be used as a tracking device «Not enough» as indicated in a publication about it.

To reach these conclusions, Fowler has used an AirTag to follow himself and thanks to the help of a colleague, he has been able to investigate whether it is useful to follow up, reaching the conclusion that Apple's new device is a "cheap and efficient new tracking device." The security measures Apple has added to prevent this - the alerts iPhone users receive if an AirTag is traveling with them among their belongings as well as the sounds they emit after three days away from its owner - wouldn't be enough for Fowler. .

From his adventure, he mentions in the Washington Post that, after a week of monitoring, he received alerts from both devices, his iPhone and the AirTag itself. After three days, the AirTag used made its first sound, but it was "a mere 15 seconds of a slight squeak" which, measured, was about 60 decibels (dB). After those 15 seconds, it was silent for hours until it made the same sound again which "was easy to muffle by applying pressure to the top of the AirTag."

The countdown to sound again is reset once the AirTag is back in contact with its owner's iPhone, so if we were following a family member, it might never activate.

On the other hand, Fowler talks about the alerts on his iPhone of an unknown AirTag moving next to him, but these notifications would not be available for Android devices, so it would only serve for users of the Apple ecosystem. He also criticizes the little information that Apple has added to find that unknown AirTag since it is only possible through the emission of sound from it.

In the publication, Fowler also admits that Apple has done much more to prevent the use of these types of devices as a location device than its competitors., such as Tile with the use of Bluetooth. You can see his full story and deepen his experience in the following link.


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