New York City is now giving free Apple AirTags, a GPS tracking device, to crack down on the rampant car thefts these days, Mayor Eric Adams announced in a press conference on Sunday, Apr. 30.
The city is launching its latest safety initiative as it attempts to combat the alarming increase in car thefts, turning to modern technology.
This photo illustration taken on February 13, 2023 shows an Apple Air Tag in Washington, DC.
New York City Gives Free Apple AirTags to Fight Rising Car Thefts
According to CBS News, NYC Mayor Adams disclosed that they plan to deploy hundreds of Apple AirTags to various car owners in the city. The giveaway is part of the efforts to significantly tame the surge of car theft, which has been growing in the past few years.
The New York Police Department revealed the alarming car theft rate in the Big Apple. The New York Post reports that the cases continue to rise, with roughly a 13% bump from last year. On Apr. 23, auto theft cases increased to 4,492. In the same period in the previous year, it was nearly 4,000.
With the continued surge of auto theft cases in NYC, the city is now turning to more innovative ways to kick off the decline.
Mayor Adams says that the AirTag tracking device enables car owners to hide it on their vehicles, making it elusive to criminal minds. Besides that, he notes that its users could track their automobiles easily. The GPS gadget allows them to check the real-time location of their vehicle straight from their phones.
Given that, the NYC Mayor dubs the Apple accessory a "really amazing piece of ingenuity," urging residents in the city to get their hands on it.
In the joint conference with the NYPD, the Mayor announced that they are giving away 500 AirTags. He shares that the Association for Better New York donated hundreds of GPS tracking devices to be given away.
How to Get Free AirTags?
As per Fox News, the NYC mayor said they would be distributing the free AirTags on the 43rd Precinct in the Bronx. But besides that, the Crime Prevention Unit of NYPD is also planning to give away the device in other precincts with an alarming rate of auto theft.
Mayor Adams further notes that they are raising more funds to get their hands on more GPS tracking devices, which they plan to hand out to more car owners in these crime-ridden locations.
CBS News points out that the NYPD assures Big Apple folks that they do not have access to the location information of the free AirTags they will hand out.
It is worth noting, though, that AirTags exclusively works with iPhones. So if you are an Android user, you might have to buy a compatible GPS device yourself for car theft protection.
