Apple and Google announced that they are working together to develop an "industry specification" that would stop Bluetooth location-tracking gadgets, like Apple's AirTag, from being utilized for stalking without the owners' consent.
The two major technology companies revealed the new specification in a press statement, saying it will enable location-tracking devices to work with illegal tracking detection and notifications, letting users know if they are being followed, The Hill reported.
Furthermore, if all vendors adopt the new industry specification, it would establish a first-of-its-kind standard that would enable Android and iOS devices to detect any suspicious Bluetooth tracker, per PCMag.
Since the release of Apple's AirTag in 2021, privacy advocates have expressed concern, which has led to the formation of this collaboration between the two tech behemoths.
The device's safety has come under fire from privacy activists due to the possibility of stalking and unwanted tracking. In response, Apple enhanced the iPhone's unidentified AirTag notifications and developed an application for Android that checks for unauthorized trackers.
Apple-Google Collaboration Earns Praise
According to Erica Olsen of the National Network to End Domestic Violence, tracking devices have been cause for concern for years prior to the launch of the AirTag. She has commended the updated industry standard, saying that it will reduce opportunities for this technology to be abused and lessen the "burden on survivors in detecting unwanted trackers."
Olsen also expressed appreciation for such efforts and said that they "look forward to continuing to work together" to find a solution to the issue of "unwanted tracking and misuse."
Other tech companies like Samsung, Tile, Chipolo, eufy Security, and Pebblebee have endorsed the draft standard, according to The Verge.
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