Exes Creep up on Women! Apple Sued for Serious Airtag Stalking
AirTag stalking is responsible for the death of women from Akron, Ohio, and Indianapolis too
“If you create an item which is useful for tracking stolen items, then you have also created a perfect tool for stalking,” says Eva Galperin, Director of Cyber-Security at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. She said this expressing her view on recent Apple’s AirTag case. So true!! Technology is a double-sided knife and nothing proves more than this case. Two women filed a case against the California-based company on charges of negligence w.r.t AirTag stalking. In a class action suite, the two women said, the device is putting people at risk. As per police reports, Apple’s AirTag device can track a stranger’s mobile without their consent! Earlier when Apple released AirTag it called the device “stalker proof”. While one woman’s ex planted the device into her car’s tire wheel, the other one’s ex left one in her child’s school bag. The women argue the AirTag stalking has been responsible for the death of women from Akron, Ohio, and Indianapolis.
Apple although didn’t directly admit its negligence, it did say that “bad actors” are misusing the AirTags. Only in February, Apple released a statement announcing planned upgrades to make it easier to find the devices and warn users of unknown devices that they might be carrying. “Unwanted tracking has long been a societal problem, and we took this concern seriously in the design of AirTag. It’s why the Find My network is built with privacy in mind, uses end-to-end encryption, and why we innovated with the first-ever proactive system to alert you of unwanted tracking,” said Apple.
Apple’s AirTag is a mini 3.2 cm sized gadget that is meant to be attached to frequently lost things like keys, wallets, and backpacks for users to find them with ease. It is basically a Bluetooth device that is synchronized to Apple’s Find My Network app. The connected device when within its range, emits a beeping sound after a few hours of catching the signal. The company also released an app Tracker Detect in December 2022 for Android users. The most dangerous feature of AirTag lies in its ability to tag stranger devices as long as it wants and then shut down making it difficult for the victim to find the AirTag device. If the user thinks the beeping sound that an AirTag emits, is good enough for a warning signal, he is in for a bigger risk. AirTags emit a 60-decibel beep, a sound strength weak enough to get muffled. Given the size of the device, it is pretty much easy to put it under cover. And the noise would only begin to emit after 8 hrs!
In defense, Apple holds the opinion that AirTag is only too good at tracking a device. Its ‘Find My Network’ uses around a billion Apple devices around the world their networks to make long-range tracking possible. However, the users’ safety is ensured only in case the tracking device takes permission from every other mobile it connects to, a responsibility Apple has to take seriously.
The women who filed the case state that Apple’s measures “are woefully inadequate, and do little, if anything, to promptly warn individuals if they are being tracked.” “There is a gross imbalance between the protections available to iOS/Apple users, versus those between the protections available to iOS/Apple users, versus those available to individuals with Android devices-rendering Android users nearly defenseless to tracking/stalking using an AirTag.” The lawsuit specifically mentions concerns raised by domestic violence groups, digital privacy experts, and news reports published after Apple announced the AirTag in April 2021, including the one that featured interviews with seven women who believed they had been tracked with AirTags.
The post Exes Creep up on Women! Apple Sued for Serious Airtag Stalking appeared first on Analytics Insight.
AirTag stalking is responsible for the death of women from Akron, Ohio, and Indianapolis too
“If you create an item which is useful for tracking stolen items, then you have also created a perfect tool for stalking,” says Eva Galperin, Director of Cyber-Security at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. She said this expressing her view on recent Apple’s AirTag case. So true!! Technology is a double-sided knife and nothing proves more than this case. Two women filed a case against the California-based company on charges of negligence w.r.t AirTag stalking. In a class action suite, the two women said, the device is putting people at risk. As per police reports, Apple’s AirTag device can track a stranger’s mobile without their consent! Earlier when Apple released AirTag it called the device “stalker proof”. While one woman’s ex planted the device into her car’s tire wheel, the other one’s ex left one in her child’s school bag. The women argue the AirTag stalking has been responsible for the death of women from Akron, Ohio, and Indianapolis.
Apple although didn’t directly admit its negligence, it did say that “bad actors” are misusing the AirTags. Only in February, Apple released a statement announcing planned upgrades to make it easier to find the devices and warn users of unknown devices that they might be carrying. “Unwanted tracking has long been a societal problem, and we took this concern seriously in the design of AirTag. It’s why the Find My network is built with privacy in mind, uses end-to-end encryption, and why we innovated with the first-ever proactive system to alert you of unwanted tracking,” said Apple.
Apple’s AirTag is a mini 3.2 cm sized gadget that is meant to be attached to frequently lost things like keys, wallets, and backpacks for users to find them with ease. It is basically a Bluetooth device that is synchronized to Apple’s Find My Network app. The connected device when within its range, emits a beeping sound after a few hours of catching the signal. The company also released an app Tracker Detect in December 2022 for Android users. The most dangerous feature of AirTag lies in its ability to tag stranger devices as long as it wants and then shut down making it difficult for the victim to find the AirTag device. If the user thinks the beeping sound that an AirTag emits, is good enough for a warning signal, he is in for a bigger risk. AirTags emit a 60-decibel beep, a sound strength weak enough to get muffled. Given the size of the device, it is pretty much easy to put it under cover. And the noise would only begin to emit after 8 hrs!
In defense, Apple holds the opinion that AirTag is only too good at tracking a device. Its ‘Find My Network’ uses around a billion Apple devices around the world their networks to make long-range tracking possible. However, the users’ safety is ensured only in case the tracking device takes permission from every other mobile it connects to, a responsibility Apple has to take seriously.
The women who filed the case state that Apple’s measures “are woefully inadequate, and do little, if anything, to promptly warn individuals if they are being tracked.” “There is a gross imbalance between the protections available to iOS/Apple users, versus those between the protections available to iOS/Apple users, versus those available to individuals with Android devices-rendering Android users nearly defenseless to tracking/stalking using an AirTag.” The lawsuit specifically mentions concerns raised by domestic violence groups, digital privacy experts, and news reports published after Apple announced the AirTag in April 2021, including the one that featured interviews with seven women who believed they had been tracked with AirTags.
The post Exes Creep up on Women! Apple Sued for Serious Airtag Stalking appeared first on Analytics Insight.
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