Apple Airtag as Anti-theft Device

[Burnadell]

It is Bluetooth but it automatically pings off anyone’s phone that has the Find My app. Vast majority of people have it on.

So it relays/repeats thru other people’s iPhones?


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I still don't understand how the AirTag can be picked up by someone else's iPhone. Does that mean that ANYONE who has an iPhone and walks close to the Tag will get an alert...including multiple people at the same time if they have their "Find My" apps turned on? Wouldn't it need to be synced or whatever?

[ClayW]

From my experience, the tags aren’t what they’re made out to be.

They only update their location if an iPhone is nearby. Pointless if something is truly lost. I would think they’d be worthless on a dog collar for example.

And for y’all saying it notifies of someone being followed….I don’t think this is the case. My daughter has one on her backpack (linked to my phone) and I’ve never had someone mention anything (wife, grandparents, bus driver, etc….)

[ClayW]

So it relays/repeats thru other people’s iPhones?


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To my understanding, yes.

It uses the network to update its location.

[WItoTX]

I've heard several stories of criminals put these on cars they are looking to steal. I've talked with more than a few people who found these tags on their very theft prone cars kind of wild.

[Tmag]

Read up on it. I read Bluetooth 5.0 is a max of 800 feet.

If I wanted to track a high value item, I’d get a Spot tracking device that transmits to satellites.


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I agree Bill.

[Fmjag64]

Criminals have used airtags to track cars they want to steal, women they're interested in, etc. Consequently, Apple updated the software and now airtags send an alert that you're being followed. So my understanding is that if someone steals my SxS with an airbag hidden in it, it'll send an alert to the criminal that he's being followed.

Bingo!

[Rick]

here is a video that explains it pretty well, verdict, is it could help, but not guaranteed

https://youtu.be/JvGJ-SPbrDQ

[CrownKiller14]

When I first got my Airtags I tested them.

Placed one in my wifes car (her knowing), and 5 minutes down the road she got a notification that there said "Airtag detected near you".
It did this every time she got in her car, eventually she got annoyed with it and took it out.

If you're going to use AirTags as theft prevention, hide it very well and might help the police catch who ever has it before they remove the Airtag.

Airtags are great for urban areas, where it can ping of the thousands of iphones around you. But if you live in remote areas they aren't going to do a whole lot for you.

Also they need to do a family update where you can share you Tags with a family members. Right now they can only be linked to one iphone.

[stinkbelly]

My friend put one of these on her dog collar because her dog escapes a lot. About a month later the dog escaped. It was of no use finding the dog and the dog was running through a neighborhood with lots of people and houses.

[freerhunter16]

And for y’all saying it notifies of someone being followed….I don’t think this is the case. My daughter has one on her backpack (linked to my phone) and I’ve never had someone mention anything (wife, grandparents, bus driver, etc….)[/QUOTE]

I can assure you this happens. We are dealing with this right now. My wife received a notification that she was being followed on Thursday. Apparently, someone placed an airtag somewhere on her vehicle. We notified police, they came to the house and searched extensively. We took it to my mechanic and had him put it on the lift and spent several hours searching. We still have not been able to locate it.

[Kevin]

I can assure you this happens. We are dealing with this right now. My wife received a notification that she was being followed on Thursday. Apparently, someone placed an airtag somewhere on her vehicle. We notified police, they came to the house and searched extensively. We took it to my mechanic and had him put it on the lift and spent several hours searching. We still have not been able to locate it.

Are you sure its not alerting off the tag in your daughters backpack by mistake? Or you dropped one on accident between the seats?

[CrownKiller14]

And for y’all saying it notifies of someone being followed….I don’t think this is the case. My daughter has one on her backpack (linked to my phone) and I’ve never had someone mention anything (wife, grandparents, bus driver, etc….)

I can assure you this happens. We are dealing with this right now. My wife received a notification that she was being followed on Thursday. Apparently, someone placed an airtag somewhere on her vehicle. We notified police, they came to the house and searched extensively. We took it to my mechanic and had him put it on the lift and spent several hours searching. We still have not been able to locate it.[/QUOTE]



I'm sure yall have already tried but on the notification it says you can "play sound" to help locate the tag.
Guess I'd be driving my wife's car until we located that tag...
Gas Tank? That's scary stuff thinking someone can track you wife anytime.

[Bill]

It’s trying to use it for a purpose I don’t think it was intended. If it ‘warns’ somebody they’re being tracked, it would alert the thief or if (God forbid) somebody abducted a child. My 2 cents.

The Spor Trace is more expensive, but would be what I’d use for a high value item or a child’s backpack.

I know local law enforcement use them in operations. I use a Spot Gen3 to 1-way communicate with my wife when hunting here in Montana and in non cell service areas in the mountains. It works well.

Here’s the Trace.

https://www.findmespot.com/en-us/products-services/spot-trace

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[Burnadell]

I can assure you this happens. We are dealing with this right now. My wife received a notification that she was being followed on Thursday. Apparently, someone placed an airtag somewhere on her vehicle. We notified police, they came to the house and searched extensively. We took it to my mechanic and had him put it on the lift and spent several hours searching. We still have not been able to locate it.

Was this a text message, voice message, or what?

My question is...does EVERY iPhone within a prescribed distance from the AirTag receive a notification? If there were 20 people in a crowd, standing near the vehicle with the tag, do they ALL receive a notification??? This makes no sense to me.

Can someone, who actually knows, explain who gets the notification?


[Quote=Crownkiller14;16048594]I'm sure yall have already tried but on the notification it says you can "play sound" to help locate the tag.
Guess I'd be driving my wife's car until we located that tag...
Gas Tank? That's scary stuff thinking someone can track you wife anytime. [/QUOTE

So, your wife was NOT ABLE to "play sound" to locate it?

[freerhunter16]

It is not one of ours. We have never owned an AirTag. The notification was an alert that took her to her maps and showed her the exact route she had been. It had an option to disable the AirTag, but when you click that option it gives an error message. We have driven the car and received the notification three different times. We can not make it play a sound.

We contacted Apple to determine if another device could be causing this notification (air pods, iPad, etc.) and were told no.. that it is definitely an AirTag. Not sure what our next move is at this point but I can tell you we are armed and on full alert at all times. Scary stuff.