Google and Apple are working together to address the AirTag issue

What you need to know

• Apple and Google have announced a new partnership aimed at tackling unwanted location tracking.
• The companies have released draft specifications on best practices for companies developing location trackers.
• Apple’s AirTag and other location trackers have been criticized for allowing users to stalk others.

Location trackers are incredibly useful for people who are prone to losing their stuff. However, they can also pose security risks as they can be used to inadvertently stalk other people who have a hidden tracker on their person. This became an even bigger problem with the introduction of the AirTag, and Apple and Google are working together to address the issue.

Apple announced (Opens in a new tab) On Tuesday, the two companies met to draft specifications to introduce best practices for companies that do location tracking. This will allow both iOS and Android phones to detect and alert users of unwanted trackers in their vicinity.

“Bluetooth trackers have created enormous benefits for the user, but they also introduce the potential for unwanted tracking, which requires industry-wide action to resolve,” says Dave Burke, Google’s Vice President of Engineering for Android.

In fact, companies like Samsung, Tile, Chipolo, eufy Security, and Pebblebee have expressed “support” for the draft, which includes comments from manufacturers and safety advocacy groups. Apple and Google plan to review the feedback and feedback collected over the next few months, with plans to have the specification ready by the end of 2023. It will then be implemented in future versions of Android and iOS.

Spam tracking was an issue before AirTags came into the picture, but the category exploded with the launch of Apple’s tracker tool, which only highlighted the problem with location trackers. Samsung also launched its own tracker, and Google was rumored to have one. Steps have been taken to help users avoid unwanted tracking, including the AirTag app for Android.

“One of the key elements to reducing abuse is a comprehensive solution at the operating system level that can detect trackers made by different companies on a variety of smartphones that people use every day,” says Alexandra Reeve Givens, President and CEO of the Center for Democracy. & Technology,” We commend Apple and Google for their partnership and dedication to developing a unified solution to improve detectability.”

Source link