I've had that on my Android phone for some time now.
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/de.seemoo.at_tracking_detection/
Yes there's an Apple version
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/airguard-tracking-protection/id1659427454
this post was submitted on 28 Jul 2023
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This will be built-in Google Play for all Android 6+, no need for external app
But then you have to have Google Play installed ๐คฎ๐คฎ
There's an official apple version on Google Play too just search for com.apple.trackerdetect
Isn't it the one app that Apple has published on the Play Store?
Apple has quite a few apps there. Music for one.
I know a few people that hide them in their bike frames. Will it tell bike thieves that the tag hidden in the stolen bike is following them?
I would assume so. It's a difficult thing, because I'm really not okay with people covertly tracking others with airtags without their consent, but the it can of course also be used to track stolen items or so.
Feels like a tragedy of the commons sorta thing. Most people would use air tags responsibly, but a small number of people abuse them and thus kinda ruin them for everyone. We can't have nice things because people suck.
Yeah, they aren't really useful for anti theft, but that's the compromise you have to make for safety
Yes it will, after some amount of time.
I think the solution to this problem is embedding the tag into the frame in such a way that removing it would be destructive or at least highly impractical. That's my plan at least. Waiting for my Chipolo trackers to arrive.
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They're not anti theft devices. Never were. They are anti losing my shit devices.
Slap one on your keys, wallet, etc, and when you lose them, you can track them to see where they ended up falling out of your pocket.
If you want a tracking device, pay for one. They'll use a SIM card, be undetectable, and track perfectly without needing a network of phones.
After reading this, I'm wondering how a phone could differentiate an Airtag following me from for example a guy with an Airtag sitting somewhere near me while inside a train for two hours.
It can tell because the random guy's Airtag will be connected to his iPhone, it will only notify people if it isn't close to the owner's device
I believe the tracker doesn't emit the same signal when the phone the AirTag is paired with are communicating directly. So as long as the owner of the airtag is in the vicinity it will not be considered as following/stalking you.
I'm pretty sure it's length of time. If you're on a train next to someone, you won't be for more than an hour or two. Not two days.
When the device follows you constantly for multiple days is likely when it'll make the alert.
i guess this:
For now, if an AirTag you don't own "is separated from its owner and determined to be traveling with you," a notification will tell you this and that "the owner of the tracker can see its location."
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But we still don't have an equivalent android tag.
They're coming as part of the new Find My Device network. The launch has been delayed until Apple releases their portion of the joint anti-tracking effort.
I have a Tile Tag and it's not bad. I keep them on my keychain, in the car, and when traveling. They aren't as predominant as Air Tags yet, but they work.
I seriously suspect that Google will eventually acquire the Tile brand so they can absorb the patents without having to start from scratch.
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Aren't there a number of small gps trackers on the market that are compatible with Android? Tile and Chipolo to name a couple.
just for clarification, they are Bluetooth trackers. They don't have a GPS radio within them and have no intrinsic knowledge of where they are located. Essentially just a Bluetooth beacon
The drawback of non-AirTags is that they depend on people consciously opting in to the network (by, say, buying Tiles themselves and running the app). The AirTag network just exists because every iPhone is part of the network, whether or not people have bought AirTags themselves. The AirTag network is orders of magnitude larger and denser than, say, the Tile network.
This vast difference between coverage networks will also push Tiles to extinction, as the Tile network is now far, far worse than the AirTag one, and there's not much point in buying one. If you're serious about tracking your stuff, it's quite possibly worth buying a used iPad just for this purpose.
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Thatโs the amazing thing about air tags that no other tracker can offer. For better or for worse, every modern iPhone is - by default - reporting the location of nearby tags. Itโs nearly impossible to actually lose something with an AirTag on it assuming it doesnโt come off and the area has even the faintest cell signal.
Thatโs far from the case with tile or any other tracker.
I'm optimistic Google will be able to wave a hand and bam now 2 billion Android devices do it courtesy of Google Play Services
They can? Because I just checked on my Pixel 7 running latest update of Android 13 and the documented feature does not exist under safety and emergency. The update I'm running was released on July 5th and there are no newer updates available.
So again.... "Now"??? I guess they mean it's in the next version.
From the article:
Now Android users will soon get these "Unknown Tracker Alerts."
Emphasis mine.
Rule of android: if a post reads "now" in the headline, this means anywhere from 1 week to Never depending on where in the world you live and what phone you have.
Also applies to when Google does a "staged" rollout. Android Auto "Coolwalk" PTSD...
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This has already existed for a long time now
No it hasn't.
Before, you had to install an app. This is a play store services update, which neans ALL android phones will be able to do it by default.
You mean it's built in now. It still has objectively existed for a long time now. There has been an app called AirGuard around for a long time. Also not every Android has play services. There's a large degoogled operating system community now.
With the official Apple app, you had to know that it existed, find it in the Google Play Store, install it, and then manually run it every single time you wanted to check for trackers.
With AirGuard, you had to know that an unofficial implementation existed, find it, install it, and then either run a manual sweep or have it permanently run in the background if you wanted to get notified of trackers near you.
Neither implementation would tell you how long a tracker had been following you, or where it first started following you. Neither option would allow you to ring the tracker. Neither option would allow you to read the information on the tracker via NFC.
So no, this has not "objectively existed for a long time now."
What you mean is that other, far more limited options have existed for a while now.
Integration into play services so almost all Android devices do it by default without needing to install an app hasn't.
Is this just apple airtags or all tracking devices? Honestly all these articles do is teach stalkers not to use airtags and instead use something else.
the alerts currently work only with AirTags, but Google says it will work with tag manufacturers to expand its coverage.
Google and Apple built the specification, but other tracker makers needs to adopt it.
Stalkers don't give a shit. It's not like they're thinking rationally anyway. There's quite a few non-tag options out there but you need a subscription that's attached to the device's unique ID. You can regulate and put in a million ways to prevent stalking but they will always find a way.
And they'll have to do it without a network of billions of phones helping them.
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