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Android is adding some extra protection against stalkers tracking you with tags
- Google is rolling out an update to Android’s unknown tracker alerts that makes it easier to stop people from tracking you.
- A new feature lets you temporarily pause your device’s location from being used by an unknown tracker tag.
- It also adds a new “Find Nearby” feature that will help you find the exact location of an unknown tracker tag.
When Apple released the AirTag a few years ago, it inadvertently created one of the most effective tools for stalking people, causing a lot of real world harm. The reason it’s so effective as a stalking tool is because there are so many Apple devices it can piggyback off of for location updates. To combat this, Apple, Google, and other industry leaders joined forces to create unknown tracker alerts, a feature that makes it possible to detect when an unwanted tracker tag may be traveling with you. Today, Google has announced an update that makes it even easier to combat stalking via tracker tags.
Google is now rolling out an update to unknown tracker alerts that implements two new features:
- Temporarily Pausing Location: Google says that you can now temporarily pause location updates from your phone to prevent its location from being used by a detected unknown tracker tag for up to 24 hours. This gives you the opportunity to find and physically disable the tag without the owner receiving location updates as you search for it.
- Find Nearby: There’s also a new “Find Nearby” feature that will help you pinpoint the exact location of an unknown tracker tag. Your Android device will guide you to the tag to help you find it if it’s hidden somewhere.
Here are screenshots of the new “Find Nearby” feature:
As you can see, when you receive an unknown tracker alert, you’ll see a button that you can press to initiate “Find Nearby.” Android will help you locate the nearby tracker tag by assessing the strength of your device’s Bluetooth connection with it. Locating a tracker tag via Bluetooth may not be as precise as via ultra-wideband (UWB), but it should help you find the general location of the tag, which you can then pinpoint the exact location of by playing a sound from it.
Google shares that these features are rolling out for Find My Device compatible tags, and a spokesperson for the company confirmed to us that your tracker tags won’t need firmware updates. Instead, your Android phone just needs to be running Android 6 or later and have Google Play Services installed.
Lastly, Google says that, in addition to these new features, it’s made “technology improvements” that enable unknown tracker alerts to be delivered faster and more often. Sounds like a win all around!