This is unbelievable. The @nytimes literally published a 3000 word story about how boring I am. Tracked my movements, and even secretly followed me around with a camera! How do they not have a public editor?? https://www.nytimes.com/...
@kashhill
Kashmir Hill on x
The GPS tracker worked best out in the country but when my husband went into Manhattan one day, the AirTag kept extremely close tabs on him, even when he went underground, into subway. The idea of these trackers being used without someone's consent is very scary. https://twitter.…
@kashhill
Kashmir Hill on x
After talking to people freaked out by Apple ‘AirTag detected near you’ alerts, I decided to test out the location trackers currently on the market. By planting them on my husband and his belongings. With his permission. https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@michellemanafy
Michelle Manafy on x
sure, right: who needs regulation when Apple will give a stern warning to users that they should not use an invasive technology illegally https://twitter.com/...
@kashhill
Kashmir Hill on x
Me, convinced I have most twisted mind in room: How about I plant a ton of location trackers on my husband? My editor: Can u do it for Valentine's day? Me: sure Photo editor: Let's have a photographer secretly follow him! Me *whispers*: What have i done? https://www.nytimes.com/.…
@jonworth
Jon Worth on x
This is fascinating. And pretty scary - what the tech less known than AirTags can do! https://twitter.com/...
@hypervisible
@hypervisible on x
Later this month, Apple will put out an update where users will have to pinky swear not to use the tags in abusive ways. https://www.protocol.com/...
@jason_kint
Jason Kint on x
I enjoyed the thread below this as much as the article which I also highly recommend. Good sports. And @kashhill, as always, delivers on making us stop and think differently about privacy lost and the implications. https://twitter.com/...
@evacide
Eva on x
My favorite tidbit from @kashhill's physical tracker story is when a tracker company says they get about 30 subpoenas a year. This is why police training can be impactful. I'm going to make sure they get SO MANY MORE SUBPOENAS. https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@jce_ic
John Edwards on x
This is a good story about retail surveillance technology - who'd have predicted this?? Oh yeah ... https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@davidlat
David Lat on x
2/ Lawyers should read up on these tracking devices, which could become sources of evidence (a la EZ Pass records in divorce cases). And I feel it's only a matter of time before some enterprising plaintiff-side lawyer sues over them....
@samifathi_
Sami Fathi on x
Regarding recent AirTags controversy, let us not forget that AirTags are the first real mainstream item-tracker. There is no industry playbook that @Apple can simply follow in discouraging & preventing unwanted tracking (stalking). It is writing that playbook itself with AirTags.
@imore
@imore on x
“Like a child who just got pushed off the swing by the schoolyard bully, AirTags will tell on you, and Apple will rat you out to the fuzz.” - @LukeFTech https://www.imore.com/...
@elizabeth_joh
Elizabeth Joh on x
If @kashhill can use AirTags, Tiles and other trackers to easily follow her husband you have to wonder when police will start to use them. If they haven't already. https://www.nytimes.com/...
@wired
@wired on x
Even though Tile and other competitors to the AirTag exist, the vastness of Apple's ecosystem sets the device apart. If you are concerned that a secret AirTag may be recording your location, these signs may help detect the tracker. https://www.wired.com/...
@mgngates
Megan Gates on x
Low-cost tracking devices are great for finding your keys. But they also are great for stalking. Nice work from @kashhill to drive home that fact. https://twitter.com/...
@bethancantrell
Bethan Cantrell on x
This article is interesting, useful, and also a little funny. Having had s few stalkers and an ex who would tell me how easy it would be to track me online married or not, I'm sensitive to this type of safety risk. & that's aside from working on privacy for a living. Link in OP h…
@cfarivar
Cyrus Farivar on x
The AirTag is the best bike tracking device out there — $29! battery life that lasts a year! — but this as a personal threat model is something else. https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz
Taylor Lorenz on x
Outstanding story (as always) by @kashhill 🔥 https://twitter.com/...
@pt
@pt on x
Seems like Apple working with Google to make every phone identify these is a pretty good solve, and they don't need regulators to motivate them. Bad press will do it. https://twitter.com/...
@reneritchie
Rene Ritchie on x
Where @kashhill puts in the work! “For all the bad press the AirTags have gotten, and as flaky as the detection mechanisms were, at least I was consistently getting notifications they were following me,” he said. “The privacy dangers of the other trackers were way worse.” https:/…
@kashhill
Kashmir Hill on x
Oh, yesterday, the day after I asked Apple for comment on my husband-tracking experiment, the company put out a statement about things it is going to do to make unwanted tracking harder, including making the AirTag noise louder. https://www.apple.com/...
@mathewjschwartz
Mathew Schwartz on x
Excellent story. Destined to be adapted into a romcom? https://twitter.com/...
@alecmuffett
Alec Muffett on x
@kashhill “Bad people use multipurpose thing to do badness” wrapped in a moral panic — this is the challenge of dual-use writ large, and I've little sympathy because (e.g.) similar thinking calls for weakening “end-to-end encryption” to preserve public safety: https://twitter.com…
@natalan
Natalie Alana Ashton on x
this makes me want to go and live in the woods https://twitter.com/...
@varlogsimon
Simon Fondrie-Teitler on x
This is so good https://twitter.com/...
@ian
@ian on x
They still don't address the elephant in the room of their product being used to stalk people who don't carry iPhones: https://www.apple.com/... Why do I need to spend like $700 to opt out of being tracked? What happened to privacy being a right?
@somegadgetguy
Juan Carlos Bagnell on x
Apple's response to the AirTag abuse issues is just PR fluff. The proposed “improvements” do little to protect against abuses when folks use older iphones or androids. https://www.apple.com/...
@bmcclendon
@bmcclendon on x
Apple Airtags are fundamentally and unfixably privacy-destroying and should be removed from the market. They completely destroy any credibility that Apple had in the privacy space. https://www.theregister.com/ ...
@dcseifert
Dan Seifert on x
thought about this AirTags announcement a little more and while it's good that Apple plans to make it alert people sooner, the new privacy notice / warning screen isn't going to deter anyone and is there solely to cover Apple's liability https://www.theverge.com/...
@caro_milanesi
Carolina Milanesi on x
2/ I am glad to see Apple address the very valid concerns expressed in recent months by women who fell victim to ill-intentioned offenders using AirTags to track them. The updates help in multiple ways:
@drbarnard
David Barnard on x
Giving my wife a set of AirTags was a huge mistake. I have near persistent warnings on my iPhone because they are all registered to her account. Apple needs to solve family use cases before they add more alerts. It's been by far my most frustrating Apple purchase ever. https://tw…
@detroitborg
Michael Kukielka on x
AirTag is getting more scrutiny than other item trackers, but I also believe that is making it more secure. Initially I believed this was a PR minefield for Apple, but it's also neccessary part of getting a grip on privacy and security in their ecosystem.
@oliverjhaslam
Oliver Haslam on x
This is vital. How many AirTags are out there doing their master's bidding without anyone knowing because they happened to stalk someone with an Android device? https://twitter.com/...
@vyyyper
@vyyyper on x
This is an ok start but still doesnt address Android owners who are tracked with airtags..... https://twitter.com/...
@kifleswing
Kif on x
Forthcoming changes to Apple's AirTag tracker includes a setup warning that using it to track people is probably illegal https://www.cnbc.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@markgurman
Mark Gurman on x
Apple responds to AirTags stalking concerns, but I am not really seeing anything in here that actually prevents it from happening. The only 100% solution is to dumb down the product by getting rid of the Find My network, which won't happen. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
@dsilverman
Dwight Silverman on x
Good to see Apple bolstering anti-stalking features, but there's no mention of the issue of AirTags used to track Android users. There's an app, but it must be manually run. Apple to address AirTag stalking problem with upcoming features https://techcrunch.com/... via @techcrunch
@stephenrobles
Stephen Robles on x
Updates to AirTag, specifically to curtail unwanted tracking https://twitter.com/...
@mattcassinelli
Matthew Cassinelli on x
“Based on our knowledge and on discussions with law enforcement, incidents of AirTag misuse are rare; however, each instance is one too many.” Glad to see Apple addressing this properly: https://www.apple.com/...
@gocatgo
Rick Knight on x
Any and all “trackers” can be used for nefarious reasons. Manufacturers and service providers must continue to make improvements to reduce risks of abuse. The focus is in #AirTags because #Apple. https://twitter.com/...
@brandonbutch
Brandon Butch on x
To elaborate on the last bullet point: “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 may be traveling with them.”
@julipuli
Juli Clover on x
Apple says that it has worked with law enforcement to catch at least one malicious person using AirTags for an unlawful purpose, and it is readily handing over information associated with any AirTag used for unwanted tracking. https://www.macrumors.com/...
@chancehmiller
Chance Miller on x
Another interesting tidbit here is that Apple confirms it has been working with law enforcement on instances of AirTag stalking. This includes “cases where information we provided has been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator.” https://9to5mac.com/...
@starfire2258
Sean Hollister on x
Stalking fears are pushing Apple to do more. How soon and how much more? Apple wouldn't give us specifics, but a couple of these tentative steps are in the right direction. https://twitter.com/...
@stevekovach
Steve Kovach on x
Apple acknowledged the AirTag stalking problem today. Sort of blamed it on customers misusing AirTags, but also said it's going to make some safety updates. Details —> https://twitter.com/...
@apollozac
Zac Hall on x
Apple doing stuff about AirTag perception https://twitter.com/...
@richontech
Rich DeMuro on x
Apple is making some big changes to AirTags to address unwanted tracking: -A new crime warning when users first set up an AirTag -Precision finding for unknown AirTags -Notifying users earlier about unknown AirTags -Making unknown AirTags emit louder sounds https://twitter.com/..…