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Comment by thatswrong0 | Hacker News Reader

From what I can tell based on the news coverage, GPS trackers didn't exist before AirTags.

But seriously though, this does seem like the kind of thing Apple and Google should collaborate on and establish a standard so that any mobile operating system can notify people of unwanted trackers without requiring the installation of an app.

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These aren’t GPS trackers though- GPS trackers are expensive, use a considerable amount of power, and require subscription fees to a service provider.

An AirTag is a dumb BLE chip that screams occasionally, and piggybacks off everyone’s iPhones which already have both GPS and cell subscriptions.

Apple does notify you of Air tags near you that aren’t yours.

Not if you're on Android and haven't installed the Tracker Detect app from Apple.

Even if you have, it still doesn't notify you. You have to open the app manually whenever you want to check for them.

I don't have an Android so can't verify this, but CNET makes it sound like the app scans automatically:

> If Tracker Detect notices an AirTag that's been following you for at least 10 minutes, the app will then allow you to play a sound from the AirTag so that you can more easily find the physical tracker. [1]

1: https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/how-to-tell-if-an-airtag-is...

I use Android and tested the official app. It doesn't warn you. You need to open the app and perform a manual scan.

There's an open source app called AirGuard that runs/scans in the background and sends you a notification if they detect "tracking". It drains some battery, but works okay.

But.. shouldn't BLE receiver be completely passive? I mean, it isn't transmitting anything, which should pretty much limit the algorithm to "get list of MACs, compare to another list of MACs, sleep 30s".

That is false. I get notifications for my partner's airtags.

Going off the app's reviews, it barely helps.

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