‘Silent AirTags’ With Speakers Off Are Sold Online To Stalk People: Here's How

An online seller on Etsy was selling AirTags with the speaker disabled, surrounding the controversial tracking device with privacy concerns once again.?

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Also Read:?Woman Was Stalked By Stranger With An Apple AirTag Allegedly Hidden Under Her Car

AirTags, while great for iPhone users where FindMy would tell you if an unknown AirTag is next to you, the same cannot be said for Android users.?This is because there is no streamlined app like Apple’s FindMy on Android.?

AirTags has speakers?

However, to still make it a little bit safer, it included a tiny speaker inside that would beep to indicate an unknown tag placed in their belongings. The speaker uses tech similar to the ones found on digital wristwatches.?

However, now people are selling AirTags with the speaker disabled, essentially making it seamless for a stalker to track an Android user without them figuring it out. Dubbed ‘SilentAirTags', the speaker has been disabled by making a tiny hole at the bottom that disconnects the speaker from the battery, preventing it from producing any sound.?

ETSY Via PCMag

Silent AirTags

The listing was soon pulled by the seller JTEE3D, with a statement revealing, "The intent of this modification was to cater to the several requests of buyers interested in my other AirTag product who were interested in fitting an AirTag to their bikes, pets and power tools. These requests led me to listing it as a product on Etsy, albeit without a great deal of traction. The vast majority of sales shown on my Etsy profile are from sales on my modified slim AirTag, designed to unobtrusively fit inside a purse or wallet.”

Also Read:?Internet Is Mocking Apple's Coin-Shaped AirTags, The Newest Product From Apple

Highlighted first by cybersecurity expert Eva Galperin, she states that such modified AirTags that claim to be for tracking lost items could easily be abused for other purposes,? “Any item that works for the purpose of catching a thief in this manner is also a perfect tool for stalking. That is why Apple advertises them as tools for tracking lost items and not stolen ones.”

Also Read:?Apple Shows Off AirTag: Coin-Sized Item Tracker For ?3000 A Piece

In a conversation with PCMag, she added, "Removing the speakers from AirTags eliminates the only anti-stalking mitigation that works automatically and does not depend on the person being stalked having a phone."?

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