This missing item search technique is also used for nefarious purposes.
The $29 AirTags used by Apple Released in April To help users track their belongings, they are being reused by auto theft fraudsters, according to an Ontario, Canada police report.
Investigators at the York Police Regional Theft Cars and Goods Unit in Aurora are warning area residents that they have “identified a new method used by thieves to track and steal high-quality vehicles” across the area, the department also warned in Thursday’s blog post.
Law enforcement officials have reported that they have investigated five incidents since September in which suspects used humble tracking technology to commit Grand Theft Auto.
Criminal suspects are implicated in placing tracking devices that are not easily lost on luxury flights in “out of sight areas” while remaining in “public places like malls or parking lots”. Then, once the cars are no doubt driven home, the thieves track the vehicles back to the victim’s home.
Criminals can hack a vehicle’s ignition with an electronic device “usually used by mechanics to reset factory settings” before leaving the victim’s garage in their vehicle.
As a precaution, law enforcement authorities advise car owners to park “in a locked garage,” if any, as most vehicles to date have been stolen directly from the victims’ sidewalks. It is also recommended to install locks on the steering wheel and the data port, in addition to installing a video surveillance system, write the police.
York police said they had seen more than 2,000 auto thefts in the past 12 months.
Meanwhile, AirTags have been used in the United States for the opposite reason: to track stolen vehicles. In August, Dan Guido, Brooklyn’s director of cybersecurity, explained his epic removal of a stolen motorcycle. no Twitter. Thanks to two AirTags Guido hidden in the car with black tape, he was able to locate it shortly after its theft.
Apple declined the Post’s request for comment.
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