this post was submitted on 14 May 2024

155 points (100.0% liked)

Technology

59201 readers

2831 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.

Our Rules

Follow the lemmy.world rules.
Only tech related content.
Be excellent to each another!
Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
Politics threads may be removed.
No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

155

Apple and Google deliver support for unwanted tracking alerts in iOS and Android (www.apple.com)

submitted 5 months ago by lautan@lemmy.ca to c/technology@lemmy.world

15 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Apple and Google have teamed up to deliver support for unwanted Bluetooth tracking alerts in iOS and Android.

top 15 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] amzd@kbin.social 30 points 5 months ago (2 children)

steal bag
get notified on my phone that there’s a tracker in there
helps me disable the tracker

Thanks mega corps 👍

[–] stevenm2406@sh.itjust.works 16 points 5 months ago (1 children)

“over time” is key in the description of how this works. I went on a work trip with a colleague recently and it was only about 24 hours after we met up that my phone notified me there was an AirTag following me, because she had one on her car keys. You wouldn’t be notified straight away.

[–] catloaf@lemm.ee 5 points 5 months ago

Yeah. A bag thief would take the valuables and toss the bag pretty quick.

[–] Aatube@kbin.melroy.org 15 points 5 months ago

I mean, stalking seems more common than using this for anti-theft

[–] pHr34kY@lemmy.world 29 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (3 children)

Google did not put it in Android. They put it in Google Services Framework. Ironically, GSF is the first part you rip out to protect your privacy.

[–] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 8 points 5 months ago

Lemmy definitely has a lot of very tech savvy users

[–] LodeMike@lemmy.today 3 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Just use AirGuard

[–] pHr34kY@lemmy.world 2 points 5 months ago

I already do.

[–] AzureRT@reddthat.com -3 points 5 months ago (2 children)

This for tracking taggers like the thing Apple has, whatever it's called. Not data tracking

[–] Aatube@kbin.melroy.org 10 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Their point is that GSF also does a lot of privacy-invasive stuff

[–] EncryptKeeper@lemmy.world -3 points 5 months ago (1 children)

The article isn’t talking about Apple or Google adding privacy-invasive stuff. It's talking about protections being put in place To prevent you from being tracked by things like Apple’s Airtags

[–] helpImTrappedOnline@lemmy.world 11 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

I think you're missing the point.

The google service that is being used for the airtag alert is one of the main ones google uses to track you. Many privacy conscious individuals have disabled this service.

Now the choice is

A) disable service to prevent google from spying on you, but risk being tracked by an airtag.

B) keep the service to prevent being tracked by an airtag, but also allow google to spy on you.

Its a loose-loose scenario.

[–] root@precious.net 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

You can also just install or create a third party app to do the same thing.

[–] pHr34kY@lemmy.world 3 points 5 months ago

There is one. It's called "AirGuard" and it has been around for a while now. I'm using it on GrapheneOS.

[–] pHr34kY@lemmy.world 5 points 5 months ago

GSF is where most of Google's invasive user tracking happens. It's proprietary, closed source and is not part of AOSP (Android Open Source Project). It is, by definition, spyware.