Apple Launches AirTags and Find My Detector App For Android, In Effort To Boost Privacy

Apple has released a new Android app called Tracker Detect, designed to help people who don’t own iPhones or iPads to identify unexpected AirTags and other Find My network-equipped sensors that may be nearby. CNET reports: The new app, which Apple released on the Google Play store Monday, is intended to help people look for item trackers compatible with Apple’s Find My network. “If you think someone is using AirTag or another device to track your location,” the app says, “you can scan to try to find it.” If the Tracker Detector app finds an unexpected AirTag that’s away from its owner, for example, it will be marked in the app as “Unknown AirTag.” The Android app can then play a sound within 10 minutes of identifying the tracker. It may take up to 15 minutes after a tracker is separated from its owner before it shows up in the app, Apple said.

If the tracker identified is an AirTag, Apple will offer instructions within the app to remove its battery. Apple also warns within the app that if the person feels their safety is at risk because of the item tracker, they should contact law enforcement. […] The Tracker Detect app, which Apple first discussed in June, requires users to actively scan for a device before it’ll be identified. Apple doesn’t require users have an Apple account in order to use the detecting app. If the AirTag is in “lost mode,” anyone with an NFC-capable device can tap it and receive instructions for how to return it to its owner. Apple said all communication is encrypted so that no one, including Apple, knows the location or identity of people or their devices.