Apple’s new Find My feature can tell you if you’re being tracked

Apple’s Find My app may get a new security feature to prevent users from using the types of devices tracked in the app. The “Item Security Alert”, seen in iOS 14.5 beta, will notify you if an unknown device being tracked on Find My is “running with you” so you can remove it or deactivate it. 9to5Mac Reports.

This feature seems designed to counteract a scenario where a Find My-compatible device is hidden in a pocket or bag and then used to track someone’s movements. The item security alert setting was found in early versions of iOS 14.3, According to Appleinsider, But was removed until its reappearance in iOS 14.5. The setting is enabled by default in beta and Apple wants it to stay on. If you turn off the setting, the system will warn you that unknown devices may see your location without notice, Apple blogger Benjamin Mayo Shared on Twitter.

It is important to address the risk of chase in Find My due to Apple’s plan to open the app to third-party accessories. It is difficult to track an iPhone, iPad, or MacBook by hiding it in someone’s bag, but a small kitchen-sized device such as Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag or Tile’s upcoming Ultra Wideband (UWB) tracker can be very handy. Apple’s rumored airtags may also be a candidate for misuse, and reintroducing the feature to iOS could mean they are on the way to release.

Image: 9to5Mac

While it’s not necessarily as powerful as GPS beacons with cellular radios, Apple’s Find My Network may have greater reach than you think. If an Apple device approaches one of these supported trackers, it can update its location, even if the tracker has no connection to the Internet. The “Community Find” feature of the tile works in a similar way. The airtag could theoretically extend reach and accuracy even further, with an added UWB signal to the tag that could make items easier to find behind walls and in other rooms.

There are at least a few instances where such gadgets have been misused: In 2018, a woman in Texas told her ex-partner on an outspoken trip to restaurants, other people’s homes, and even out-of-towners Was shown without. The way to know where she was, Abc 13 Reported. She later learns that her ex had killed a tile tracker in the console in front of her car, and was using it to find her. A beauty queen from Texas shared A similar shocking story in 2016.