Some iPhone users receiving ‘phantom’ AirTag privacy alerts, Apple shares temporary fix

Apple has made quite of bit of progress in its efforts to improve the anti-stalking and privacy features of its AirTag item trackers. AirTag was launched with more advanced anti-tracking features than similar products.

A new report from the Wall Street Journal dives into a phenomenon it refers to as “phantom AirTag alerts” that “send iPhone users on wild goose chases.”

AirTag ‘phantom’ privacy alerts

By default, iOS will send an alert when an unknown AirTag is detected near you. It alerts you that an unknown AirTag is being tracked near you and lets you (attempt) to locate it and contact law enforcement if needed.

Today’s Report explains however that some iPhone users are now receiving alerts for AirTags “in their path” in recent weeks. The alert comes from Find My App and includes a map showing the location of the AirTag’s path.

According to the report:

The maps of phantom AirTag alarms have a common pattern. They are composed of straight red lines that radiate out from their location. An AirTag could be moving (or flying) if it were to move. along these paths, it would be crossing in the middle of city streets, passing through construction zones, even penetrating walls.

It’s not clear how prevalent this problem is and if it started in the past or if it has been an ongoing issue ever since AirTag was launched.

A spokesperson for Apple confirmed that they are aware of the issue:

An Apple spokesman said that such alerts could have resulted from an iPhone receiving area Wi-Fi signals that temporarily confused its location services. You could try to fix this by going to Settings > Privacy > Locator Services and turning the switch on and off while Wi-Fi on your iPhone is active. He also said that in more densely populated areas, AirTags owned by others nearby could inadvertently trigger unwanted alerts.

9to5Mac’s Take

Again, Apple has done quite a bit to tackle stalking and safety concerns with AirTag. With that being said, however, the Find My network appears to be one of the most buggy and unreliable aspects of the AirTag experience. There have been numerous stories of incorrect tracking alerts, similar to the one we saw today in the Wall Street Journal report. All of these problems seem to be due to Find My network.

Apple promised further enhancements to AirTag and Find My throughout the remainder of the year. As of right now, there is not an exact timetable for when these changes will actually roll out. However, one of the changes promised is an “improved tracking logic” for Find My alerts.

The full report from the Wall Street Journal is worth a read and can be found here.