Apple: If You Abuse AirTags for Stalking, Expect Police to Come Knocking
If you misuse an AirTag to stalk someone, don’t be surprised if Apple teams up with law enforcement to help catch you.
“We have been actively working with law enforcement on all AirTag-related requests we’ve received,” the company said in a Thursday statement. “Based on our knowledge and on discussions with law enforcement, incidents of AirTag misuse are rare; however, each instance is one too many.”
The statement comes amid concerns that AirTags can be exploited to track people without their permission. In recent months, they've been tied to a growing number of stalking incidents involving an AirTag being placed in a victim’s car, pocket, or bag.
In response, Apple said it’s been working with law enforcement to help crack down on the malicious AirTag use. In a bit of irony, the company said the AirTag itself can make it easy to track down the perpetrators behind such crimes.
“Every AirTag has a unique serial number, and paired AirTags are associated with an Apple ID. Apple can provide the paired account details in response to a subpoena or valid request from law enforcement,” the company said. “We have successfully partnered with them on cases where information we provided has been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator, who was then apprehended and charged.”
Apple is also working on several upcoming changes to the product. One of them includes using a new warning message during the AirTag setup process, which will remind people that abusing the device for unwanted tracking is a crime in many parts of the world. The same warning message will also make it clear each AirTag is linked to the user's Apple ID.
The company is also working on a new Precision Finding feature, which promises to help an iPhone user
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