Security News > 2022 > February > Experts Create Apple AirTag Clone That Can Bypass Anti-Tracking Measures
Cybersecurity researchers have managed to build a clone of Apple Airtag that circumvents the anti-stalking protection technology built into its Find My Bluetooth-based tracking protocol.
The result is a stealth AirTag that can successfully track an iPhone user for over five days without triggering a tracking notification, Positive Security's co-founder Fabian Bräunlein said in a deep-dive published last week.
Then in May 2021, Bräunlein followed it up by sharing details of a communication protocol built on top of Find My that enables arbitrary data to be uploaded from non-internet-connected devices by sending "Find My" Bluetooth broadcasts to nearby Apple devices that can carry out the data upload. The development also comes as Apple, earlier this month, introduced a raft of new anti-stalking measures to AirTags to prevent their misuse associated with tracking unsuspecting individuals without their consent, inserting a warning notifying users that doing so has criminal repercussions.
"If an AirTag, set of AirPods, or Find My network accessory is discovered to be unlawfully tracking a person, law enforcement can request any available information from Apple to support their investigation," Apple spells out in an updated support article.
The "Find You" AirTag clone devised by Positive Security aims to get around "Every current and upcoming protection measure." It's also built using OpenHaystack, an open-source framework developed by SEEMO researchers for tracking personal Bluetooth devices via Apple's crowdsourced Find My network.
Interestingly, AirGuard, which was developed by SEEMO as a third-party alternative to Tracker Detect, is capable of discovering the clone in "Manual scan" mode, calling into question the effectiveness of the safety and security barriers implemented by Apple to safeguard users from the malicious use of AirTags.
News URL
https://thehackernews.com/2022/02/experts-create-apple-airtag-clone-that.html