Apple AirTags Are Stalkers' 'Weapon Of Choice': Dozens Of Victims Allege In A New Class Action Lawsuit

Apple Inc.'s AAPL AirTags are emerging as stalkers' "weapon of choice", a new class action lawsuit filed by dozens of victims has alleged.

What Happened: Apple AirTags can be problematic, not because of an inherent problem with the tracker, but because of how often malicious parties have misused it.

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Now, a class action lawsuit filed by dozens of victims has alleged that Apple AirTags are the "weapon of choice" of stalkers. Some of these incidents have even led to murders, showing AirTags could be a big problem.

"Consequences have been as severe as possible: multiple murders have occurred in which the murderer used an AirTag to track the victim," the lawsuit filed in a California court alleged.

“What separates the AirTag from any competitor product is its unparalleled accuracy, ease of use, and affordability," the complaint said. AirTags utilize Apple's Find My feature and leverage the wide coverage of iPhones across the US.

AirTags uses two technologies – NFC and Ultra-wideband (UWB). While NFC is good for close-range identification, UWB works for long ranges.

"With a price point of just $29, it has become the weapon of choice of stalkers and abusers," the victims said in the complaint.

‘No Place To Run'

It's not just the feeling of being stalked, it's the knowledge of someone creeping up on you that the victims are spooked off.

Apple implemented an alert system to let people know that an unidentified AirTag is following them. However, the problem with this system is that it doesn't let the victims take any action whatsoever.

"Every day, I am reminded that me and my daughter (sic) are not safe. If one's location is constantly being transmitted to an abuser, there is no place to run," said one of the victims, Brittany Alowonle.

Why It Matters: Apple's vast ecosystem of iOS devices that the AirTags leverage is more powerful and larger than any other tracker out there. That makes it all the more important for Apple to have protections in place to prevent misuse.

To help, Alphabet Inc.'s GOOG GOOGL Google launched a new feature for Android users, allowing them to detect unknown trackers.

Google also has an option for users to play a sound to locate the tracker so they can get rid of them.

Photo by Moma okgo on Shutterstock

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