I developed a device that turns an Airtag on and off at specific intervals (roughly 80% off 20% on). While the AirTag is off, it can’t be detected, and when it turns on again, you can locate it and with it your stolen item: https://undetectag.com
I'm about to order the new version to check whether it works on it too
I felt like adding that disclaimer was a nice thing to do, informing the customer and letting them make their own decision. It makes almost no difference to remove that disclaimer (well, it would increase sales). it is not to protect myself. The price is very low and margin is very thin, what happens if Apple bricks the device? There would be very little money left to refund the customers, and most of the refunds would be eaten by transaction fees. Is it worth it for the customers to receive a few cents back? And that's assuming I keep all the money in the company and don't pay myself.
I understand your point. In this case the price point makes this a bearable risk, especially to protect much more valuable items. A refund is only useful if only a certain % of people have issue or the company is big. Since this is my only product, an Airtag update that bricks the devices would just bankrupt the company and make me unable to refund most people as my margin is very low anyway.
sure but you've acknowledged that your product is something that Apple considers bad and could shut it down. that can usually be overlooked for things like emulation, but you've developed a product that does something Apple specifically added protections against after they learned of its dangerous misuse
> sure but you've acknowledged that your product is something that Apple considers bad
No. Everyone that builds projects inside someone else's ecosystem is subject to this. Even companies that like what your are doing might break it if they aren't specifically testing against your product.
your previous response to the stalking concerns was "it's 4 hours off / 1 hour on, the device is not very suitable for stalking someone"; wouldn't this comment - allowing that to change - then make it even easier for stalkers?
Well it would warn the person that they are being tracked when the airtag turns back on, so I feel like any other tracker would be better suited for stalking people, and most of the time it wouldn't even track.
As it's 4 hours off / 1 hour on, the device is not very suitable for stalking someone. Also once the AirTag is back on and the person starts moving, they will be alerted that the AirTag is tracking them.
That’s perfect for finding out where someone lives. Drop it in their bag or jacket at a concert/bar/work/whatever-in-the-evening, and the place they’re likely at in 4 hours is their home.
Not trying to be creepy, I’m just trying to demonstrate how we all need to think like adversaries (eg creeps) when designing products.
I once donated an infant car seat to a coworker but forgot I had put an AirTag on it. After she had taken it home, her iPhone told there was an unknown AirTag and she texted me. I apologized profusely and she wasn't bothered by it. Nonetheless had I been nefarious, I would have been able to get her home address.
https://undetectag.com I developed a device that turns an Airtag on and off at specific intervals.
Current Airtags are detectable right away and cannot be used to track stolen property.
That device allows you to hide an Airtag in your car, for example, and someone that steals your car will not be able to use some app to detect it. The Airtag will also not warn the thief of its presence. After some hours, the Airtag turns on again and you can find out its location.
It’s not foolproof, as the timing has to be right, but still useful.
Make it timing based and randomized. Sync the 'seed' during device init, and then the listener knows when to listen for the airtag. The airtag then turns on for a specified duration (random between some min/max time), and the listener picks it up.
Due to its timing, the device is not suitable for stalking someone. Additionally, if you place it in someone's handbag, for instance, once the AirTag comes back online and the person starts moving, they will be alerted that the AirTag is tracking them.
