Comment by 🚀 stack

=> Re: "Things I hate about living in the now part II" | In: u/darkghost

is that a near field thing? what's a tracker? must be some kind of an apple thing?

=> 🚀 stack

Jan 09 · 3 weeks ago

7 Later Comments ↓

=> 👻 darkghost [OP] · Jan 09 at 00:20:

Apple has something called AirTags. They are Bluetooth LE devices powered by a single CR2032 battery. When an iPhone finds one, it tells a mother ship where it is and that it heard AirTag #xxxxxxx without any input from the user. Enough iPhones and you can triangulate where the tag is but it's good enough to find one within a dozen meters or so. There's other devices as well that do the same thing. It's a popular way to track items (eg lost luggage) but the unsavory elements of humanity decided it was a good way to stalk people by covertly putting these on or in their belongings/vehicles.

=> 🚀 stack · Jan 09 at 02:00:

Yeah, I really hate the idea of being involuntarily dragged into a proprietary mesh network that provides me with no benefits

=> 🐸 HanzBrix · Jan 09 at 05:27:

Tile is another such thing, they are of course restricted to the tile network and therefore much less successful.

The apple ones are invisible to tile and the tile ones are invisible to apple.

There is an f-droid app that let's you detect all of them and track them down, as they are Bluetooth LE devices, it's pretty easy. I forget the name though.

=> 🚀 stack · Jan 09 at 05:33:

I think all amazon devices also connect to all the neighbors

=> 🐸 HanzBrix · Jan 09 at 05:47:

Found the fdroid app

=> — https://f-droid.org/packages/com.emacberry.uuid0xfd6fscan/

It is still good, but seems abandoned, but I also found this:

=> — https://f-droid.org/packages/f.cking.software/

=> 👻 darkghost [OP] · Jan 09 at 18:18:

@hansbrix Much appreciated F Droid app link. I've been using the phone tools and maybe I don't trust them fully.

=> 🐸 HanzBrix · Jan 09 at 19:08:

@darkghost Anytime. 😁

Original Post

=> 👻 darkghost

Things I hate about living in the now part II — Getting an unknown tracker alert on my phone. Why are these legal again? I never found it and it didn't pop up again. Must have been someone in proximity to me while I was out and about. Yes, I had it play a sound and did a manual scan. Didn't hear anything and didn't pop up.

=> 💬 8 comments · Jan 08 · 3 weeks ago