5 ms·

Should all GPS trackers be banned then? The problem with AirTags is they're accessible; these problems have always existed with any kind of GPS tracking.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
warning26 5y ago
GPS trackers require that you sign up for cell service, which is a non-trivial obstacle to overcome, and opens the user up to tracking by law enforcement. Thanks to Apple's usage of their own proprietary network, both difficulties are automatically negated.
- Closi 5y ago
  You need to link your telephone number to use an AirTag indirectly - i.e. You need an AppleID to link the AirTag to, and you are required to provide a telephone number in order to create an AppleID (which is validated via SMS). In principle, Apple has the ability to match the AirTag to a phone number (if they do this or not, I don't know).
  - nomel 5y ago
    To add to this, anyone can scan an AirTag that they've found, with NFC, and get the serial and last four digits of the owners phone number.
paxys 5y ago
Serious question – which commercially available GPS tracker can be used for this purpose? I have been looking for one for years (not for stalking, I promise) and absolutely nothing fits the bill. They are all large (impossible to slip into, say, a purse), expensive, have minimum $20/mo subscriptions (with credit card registration), require you to register a SIM card, and have a battery life measured in days. Now you just have to walk into an Apple Store with $20 cash and set up a fake Apple ID.
- tshaddox 5y ago
  They tend to be larger and more expensive, because they generally need to contain a GPS receiver to know their location and a cell phone transmitter and data plan to transmit that location.
- gnopgnip 5y ago
  It is non trivial to setup an apple id without tying it to your identifiable information. Using an airtag to track someone will notify them if they have any apple products or check with a non apple phone. Vodafone curve is a commercially available gps tracker that is about the same size and cost of an airtag. A vodafone sim is £3 a month, and you can sign up for a pre paid sim card without a credit card or providing identifiable info. There is a bike version that ties into a bike tail light for charging. The battery life can be much longer this way. There are non cell based ones like the See.Sense AIR, the battery life is generally much longer
- DenisM 5y ago
  Invoxia
- cmelbye 5y ago
  $4 GPS Tracker https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Mini-Car-GSM-GPRS-GPS-Tracker_1600396730902.html https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Mini-Car-GSM-GPRS-GPS... + $5 Pre-Paid SIM https://www.amazon.com/SpeedTalk-Mobile-Tracking-Locators-Wireless/dp/B01HE3V7UW/ https://www.amazon.com/SpeedTalk-Mobile-Tracking-Locators-Wi...
- nomel 5y ago
  I think one (more expensive) answer is to use the best tracking service that currently exists: Google Android OS. Buy a small android phone [1]. Put it in power save mode, to reduce power draw, and drop it in. This would be much less alarming than some tracking device or an AirTag, especially if you put some innocent looking picture on the Home Screen, so it looks like some kid dropped their phone in their purse, on accident. Reading this comment thread, I assume many here would agree that we should ban all small smartphones. [1] https://www.androidauthority.com/best-small-android-phones-782746/ https://www.androidauthority.com/best-small-android-phones-7...

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

warning26 5y ago

GPS trackers require that you sign up for cell service, which is a non-trivial obstacle to overcome, and opens the user up to tracking by law enforcement. Thanks to Apple's usage of their own proprietary network, both difficulties are automatically negated.

Closi 5y ago
You need to link your telephone number to use an AirTag indirectly - i.e. You need an AppleID to link the AirTag to, and you are required to provide a telephone number in order to create an AppleID (which is validated via SMS). In principle, Apple has the ability to match the AirTag to a phone number (if they do this or not, I don't know).
- nomel 5y ago
  To add to this, anyone can scan an AirTag that they've found, with NFC, and get the serial and last four digits of the owners phone number.

paxys 5y ago

Serious question – which commercially available GPS tracker can be used for this purpose? I have been looking for one for years (not for stalking, I promise) and absolutely nothing fits the bill. They are all large (impossible to slip into, say, a purse), expensive, have minimum $20/mo subscriptions (with credit card registration), require you to register a SIM card, and have a battery life measured in days. Now you just have to walk into an Apple Store with $20 cash and set up a fake Apple ID.

tshaddox 5y ago
They tend to be larger and more expensive, because they generally need to contain a GPS receiver to know their location and a cell phone transmitter and data plan to transmit that location.
gnopgnip 5y ago
It is non trivial to setup an apple id without tying it to your identifiable information. Using an airtag to track someone will notify them if they have any apple products or check with a non apple phone. Vodafone curve is a commercially available gps tracker that is about the same size and cost of an airtag. A vodafone sim is £3 a month, and you can sign up for a pre paid sim card without a credit card or providing identifiable info. There is a bike version that ties into a bike tail light for charging. The battery life can be much longer this way. There are non cell based ones like the See.Sense AIR, the battery life is generally much longer
DenisM 5y ago
Invoxia
cmelbye 5y ago
$4 GPS Tracker https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Mini-Car-GSM-GPRS-GPS-Tracker_1600396730902.html https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Mini-Car-GSM-GPRS-GPS... + $5 Pre-Paid SIM https://www.amazon.com/SpeedTalk-Mobile-Tracking-Locators-Wireless/dp/B01HE3V7UW/ https://www.amazon.com/SpeedTalk-Mobile-Tracking-Locators-Wi...
nomel 5y ago
I think one (more expensive) answer is to use the best tracking service that currently exists: Google Android OS. Buy a small android phone [1]. Put it in power save mode, to reduce power draw, and drop it in. This would be much less alarming than some tracking device or an AirTag, especially if you put some innocent looking picture on the Home Screen, so it looks like some kid dropped their phone in their purse, on accident. Reading this comment thread, I assume many here would agree that we should ban all small smartphones. [1] https://www.androidauthority.com/best-small-android-phones-782746/ https://www.androidauthority.com/best-small-android-phones-7...