Security News > 2022 > February > Free Android app lets users detect Apple AirTag tracking
An Apple AirTag is a Bluetooth-based device finder released in April 2021 that allows owners to track the device using Apple's 'Find My' service.
Although Apple has implemented an intricate anti-stalking system to prevent cases of abuse, stealthy AirTag tracking continues to remain a problem.
In the case of Android users, the problem is magnified because Apple left them without an official way to locate AirTags until December 2021, when it released Tracker Detect on the Play Store.
Tracker Detect pales in comparison to its iOS counterpart, as it will only inform the victim they are tracked if it's commanded to perform a manual scan, and even then, it often misses nearby AirTags for no apparent reason.
The university researchers decided to do something about the Apple AirTag privacy problem in the Android world and reverse-engineered the iOS tracking detection to understand its inner workings better.
Apart from serving the tracking warnings faster, AirGuard can also detect trackers placed on cars, which is the most difficult for other solutions to unearth, and the best tracker placement option for malicious actors.