AirTag has gone from being a useful device for its owner to a tracking device comparable to a GPS, but how do you know if it is tracking you?
Apple AirTag is a very useful device that helps us keep track of our most precious objects, such as wallets, keys, bicycles, etc. The problem arose when this device began to be used to track people without their consent.
This is why Apple has made significant changes to AirTag to address privacy and security issues and ensure that owners use the device in the correct way, among the various changes there is also the ability to detect when an AirTag moves with you.
An AirTag can move with you and send your tracking data to the owner of the device, regardless of whether it is yours and whether you have an iPhone or not.
An AirTag doesn’t have GPS, instead it uses the Find My network of nearly two billion iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Macs. It sends out an anonymous Bluetooth signal that can be detected by any of those devices within 10 meters. Those devices will send the AirTag’s location to iCloud, which allows users to see it in their app.
If you own an AirTag, then you also own an iPhone or Android phone with the Tracker Detect app installed. If you suspect someone is tracking your movements using an AirTag, your iPhone may alert you.
But let’s dive deeper.
If you own an iPhone and an AirTag is tracking you, your phone may alert you to an “AirTag found moving with you.” This happens if these things are true:
1. The AirTag is separated from its owner.
2. Your iPhone is awake.
3. The AirTag makes a sound when it’s moved.
If you are suspicious and don’t receive an alert for an unknown AirTag nearby, you may need to make sure that tracking notifications are turned on, then follow these steps:
1. Go to Settings and select Privacy .
2. Tap Location Services and turn on Location Services .
3. Go to System Services .
4. Turn on both Find My iPhone and Significant Locations .
5. Go back to Settings and select Bluetooth .
6. Turn on Bluetooth .
7. Finally, go to the Find My app and tap yourself.
8. Turn on tracking notifications .
When AirTags are separated from their owners, they make a sound to help them find them. If you hear an AirTag or another sound that you don’t recognize but think might be an AirTag, you can open the Find My app on your device and see if a device other than yours has been found nearby.
Check your belongings for your hidden AirTag, making sure to touch jackets and bags and carefully check the pockets of your pants, purse, and wallet. I
f you checked the App after being alerted that an AirTag was following you, you want to be sure it’s not yours, you can tap Play Sound on your device to help you find it.
Similar to how you would track your AirTag, you can go to the app by tapping the alert on your iPhone, then tap Continue, then Find Nearby.
The Play Sound option only works if the Apple device paired with the AirTag is not nearby, within range. The Precision Search feature is only available on iPhone 11, 12, 13, and 14 with Ultra Wideband technology.
If you can’t play a sound from the app, there’s a good chance the unknown AirTag is no longer nearby and your iPhone can’t find it.
Once you have found the AirTag, you can use your iPhone or any other NFC-enabled smartphone to check the information. Simply hold the top of your phone close to the white side of the AirTag you found and wait for it to recognize it.
A notification will appear when the NFC is scanned, the notification will take you to a website that will have the AirTag’s serial number and the last four digits of the owner’s phone number.
If it is a lost AirTag, the owner may have added their information so they can contact you.
If you have found an AirTag that is not yours, you can disable it to prevent it from sending your location again, which means the owner will no longer be able to see the device’s current location or receive updates.
To disable the AirTag, you simply need to remove the battery.You can do this by pushing down and rotating the cover counterclockwise to open the AirTag and then taking out the battery.
AirTag has gone from being a useful device for its owner to a tracking device comparable to a GPS, but how do you know if it is tracking you?
Apple AirTag is a very useful device that helps us keep track of our most precious objects, such as wallets, keys, bicycles, etc. The problem arose when this device began to be used to track people without their consent.
This is why Apple has made significant changes to AirTag to address privacy and security issues and ensure that owners use the device in the correct way, among the various changes there is also the ability to detect when an AirTag moves with you.
An AirTag can move with you and send your tracking data to the owner of the device, regardless of whether it is yours and whether you have an iPhone or not.
An AirTag doesn’t have GPS, instead it uses the Find My network of nearly two billion iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Macs. It sends out an anonymous Bluetooth signal that can be detected by any of those devices within 10 meters. Those devices will send the AirTag’s location to iCloud, which allows users to see it in their app.
If you own an AirTag, then you also own an iPhone or Android phone with the Tracker Detect app installed. If you suspect someone is tracking your movements using an AirTag, your iPhone may alert you.
But let’s dive deeper.
If you own an iPhone and an AirTag is tracking you, your phone may alert you to an “AirTag found moving with you.” This happens if these things are true:
1. The AirTag is separated from its owner.
2. Your iPhone is awake.
3. The AirTag makes a sound when it’s moved.
If you are suspicious and don’t receive an alert for an unknown AirTag nearby, you may need to make sure that tracking notifications are turned on, then follow these steps:
1. Go to Settings and select Privacy .
2. Tap Location Services and turn on Location Services .
3. Go to System Services .
4. Turn on both Find My iPhone and Significant Locations .
5. Go back to Settings and select Bluetooth .
6. Turn on Bluetooth .
7. Finally, go to the Find My app and tap yourself.
8. Turn on tracking notifications .
When AirTags are separated from their owners, they make a sound to help them find them. If you hear an AirTag or another sound that you don’t recognize but think might be an AirTag, you can open the Find My app on your device and see if a device other than yours has been found nearby.
Check your belongings for your hidden AirTag, making sure to touch jackets and bags and carefully check the pockets of your pants, purse, and wallet. I
f you checked the App after being alerted that an AirTag was following you, you want to be sure it’s not yours, you can tap Play Sound on your device to help you find it.
Similar to how you would track your AirTag, you can go to the app by tapping the alert on your iPhone, then tap Continue, then Find Nearby.
The Play Sound option only works if the Apple device paired with the AirTag is not nearby, within range. The Precision Search feature is only available on iPhone 11, 12, 13, and 14 with Ultra Wideband technology.
If you can’t play a sound from the app, there’s a good chance the unknown AirTag is no longer nearby and your iPhone can’t find it.
Once you have found the AirTag, you can use your iPhone or any other NFC-enabled smartphone to check the information. Simply hold the top of your phone close to the white side of the AirTag you found and wait for it to recognize it.
A notification will appear when the NFC is scanned, the notification will take you to a website that will have the AirTag’s serial number and the last four digits of the owner’s phone number.
If it is a lost AirTag, the owner may have added their information so they can contact you.
If you have found an AirTag that is not yours, you can disable it to prevent it from sending your location again, which means the owner will no longer be able to see the device’s current location or receive updates.
To disable the AirTag, you simply need to remove the battery.You can do this by pushing down and rotating the cover counterclockwise to open the AirTag and then taking out the battery.