irTag lets users keep track of personal items like their keys, wallet, purse,

backpack, luggage, and more through the Find My app. Since AirTag’s launch
last April, users have written in to share countless stories of AirTag being
instrumental in reuniting them with the things they value. Thanks to
AirTag and the Find My app, a customer who lost his wallet on the subway
was able to track it down at a station across town. With the help of an AirTag
placed inside a medical kit, a parent whose child lost critical medicine on the
bus was later able to find it.
AirTag was designed to help people locate their personal belongings, not to
track people or another person’s property, and we condemn in the
strongest possible terms any malicious use of our products. Unwanted
tracking has long been a societal problem, and we took this concern seriously
in the design of AirTag. It’s why the Find My network is built with privacy in
mind, uses end-to-end encryption, and why we innovated with the first-ever
proactive system to alert you of unwanted tracking. We hope this starts an
industry trend for others to also provide these sorts of proactive warnings in
their products.
We’ve become aware that individuals can receive unwanted tracking alerts for
benign reasons, such as when borrowing someone’s keys with an AirTag
attached, or when traveling in a car with a family member’s AirPods left
inside. We also have seen reports of bad actors attempting to misuse AirTag
for malicious or criminal purposes.
Apple has been working closely with various safety groups and law
enforcement agencies. Through our own evaluations and these discussions, we
have identified even more ways we can update AirTag safety warnings
and help guard against further unwanted tracking.

Working with Law Enforcement

We have been actively working with law enforcement on all AirTag-related
requests we’ve received. Based on our knowledge and on discussions with law
enforcement, incidents of AirTag misuse are rare; however, each instance is
one too many. 
Every AirTag has a unique serial number, and paired AirTags are
associated with an Apple ID. Apple can provide the paired account details in
response to a subpoena or valid request from law enforcement. We have
successfully partnered with them on cases where information we provided has
been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator, who was then
apprehended and charged.
Law enforcement has shared their appreciation for the assistance we’ve
provided in helping them find the source of unwanted tracking. We’ve
identified additional improvements we can make in the information we share
and the educational resources we provide, and we will be taking action,
including making updates to our law enforcement documentation .

Advancements Coming to AirTag and the Find My

Network
The following updates represent important steps Apple is taking:
 New privacy warnings during AirTag setup: In an upcoming
software update, every user setting up their AirTag for the first time
will see a message that clearly states that AirTag is meant to track
their own belongings, that using AirTag to track people without
consent is a crime in many regions around the world, that AirTag is
designed to be detected by victims, and that law enforcement can
request identifying information about the owner of the AirTag.
 Addressing alert issues for AirPods: We’ve heard from users who
have reported receiving an “Unknown Accessory Detected” alert.
We’ve confirmed this alert will not display if an AirTag is detected
near you — only AirPods (3rd generation), AirPods Pro, AirPods
Max, or a third-party Find My network accessory. In the same
software update, we will be updating the alert users receive to
indicate that AirPods have been traveling with them instead of an
“Unknown Accessory.”
 Updated support documentation: Today Apple is updating
its unwanted tracking support article  on apple.com to communicate
the safety features built into AirTag, AirPods, and Find My network
accessories. This page now includes additional explanations of
which Find My accessories may trigger an unwanted tracking alert,
more visuals to provide specific examples of such alerts, and
updated information on what to do after receiving an alert, including
instructions for disabling an AirTag, AirPods, or Find My network
accessory. There are also links to resources individuals can use if they
 feel their safety is at risk, such as the National Network to End
Domestic Violence and the National Center for Victims of Crime.
We’re also investigating a series of updates that we plan to introduce later
this year, including:
 Precision Finding: This capability allows recipients of an unwanted
tracking alert to locate an unknown AirTag with precision. iPhone
11, iPhone 12, and iPhone 13 users will be able to use Precision
Finding to see the distance and direction to an unknown AirTag when
it is in range. As an iPhone user moves, Precision Finding fuses input
from the camera, ARKit, accelerometer, and gyroscope to guide them
to the AirTag through a combination of sound, haptics, and visual
feedback.
 Display alert with sound: When AirTag automatically emits a sound
to alert anyone nearby of its presence and is detected moving with
your iPhone, iP