Apple’s Find My app may have a new security feature to help prevent someone from using the types of devices tracked in the app to stalk you. “Item Safety Alerts”, located in iOS 14.5 beta, will notify you if an unknown device being tracked in Find My is “moving with you” so that you can remove or disable it, 9to5Mac reports.
The feature seems designed to counteract a scenario in which a Find My-compatible device is hidden in a pocket or bag and then used to track someone’s movements. The Security Alerts setting for the item was found in the first versions of iOS 14.3, according to AppleInsider, but was removed until its reappearance on iOS 14.5. The setting is enabled by default in the beta and Apple seems to want it to remain enabled. If you disable the setting, the system will warn you that unknown devices can see your location without being notified, Apple blogger Benjamin Mayo shared on Twitter.
Something I hadn’t considered before: the new beta includes an item Security setting in Find My. That’s how Apple is trying to avoid ‘chase’ with AirTags. If someone secretly hides a tag on your belongings, your phone will notice and let you know about it. pic.twitter.com/NVJyAZlthw
– Benjamin Mayo (@bzamayo) March 4, 2021
Addressing the risk of stalking in Find My has become important due to Apple’s plans to open the app for third-party accessories. Hiding an iPhone, iPad, or MacBook in someone’s purse to track them is difficult, but a keychain-sized device like Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag or Tile’s ultra-wide-band (UWB) tracker could be much easier . Rumors of Apple’s AirTags may also be candidates for misuse, and reintroducing this feature on iOS could mean they are about to launch.
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While not necessarily as powerful as a GPS beacon with a cellular radio, Apple’s Find My network may have more range than you might think. If an Apple device comes close to one of these supported trackers, it can update its location, even if the tracker does not have its own internet connection. Tile’s “Community Find” feature works in a similar way. AirTags could theoretically expand range and accuracy even further, with a UWB signal added to the tag that can make items easier to find behind walls and in other rooms.
There are at least some examples of device abuse like this: in 2018, a woman in Texas noticed that her ex-partner continued to show up in restaurants, other people’s homes and even on a trip out of town, without a clear way of know where she was, ABC 13 reported. She later learned that her ex had hidden a Tile tracker on the front console of her car and was using it to find her. A Texas beauty queen shared a similar story of persecution in 2016.