You can now use your Apple AirTag with a little more confidence, thanks to a new software update from Apple The company has updated its Key Finder to address a loophole that made it surprisingly easy for others to track you without your knowledge

AirTag debuted earlier this spring as Apple's long-awaited entry into the key finder market Like all the best key finders, AirTag connects to your phone via Bluetooth and can track objects like keys

AirTag owners with an iPhone 11 or later can also take advantage of the U1 chip in these iPhones to use the Precision Finding feature, which displays an arrow on the phone's screen to show which direction the AirTag is in for more accurate tracking

However, AirTag offers much more than Bluetooth localized tracking, which is limited to a range of only a few dozen meters Apple's "Find My" network turns hundreds of millions of iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks into AirTag relay stations, so as long as there is an active Apple device nearby, AirTag can be located anywhere in the world

And therein lies the problem: If you slip an AirTag into someone's coat pocket or handbag, you can track that person wherever they go without their knowledge

AirTag was supposed to offer an anti-stalking feature that would notify you if an unauthorized AirTag revealed your location, but reviewers like Caitlin McGarry of Gizmodo were quickly discovered

For example, AirTags that were disconnected from a paired iPhone were supposed to sound an alarm after a while, but that alert typically did not sound until three days later Other reports indicate that the alert beeps were not very loud and were difficult to hear when the AIrTag was in a bag or heavy clothing

Similarly, an on-screen notification alerting the user that they were being tracked by the AirTag only appeared when using a fully updated iPhone

An over-the-air update issued by Apple caused the alert to sound much earlier than it originally did, alerting the user that they were disconnected from their iPhone on AirTag

"This period changes from three days to a random time between eight and 24 hours," Apple said in a statement

This may not help someone being stalked by someone living with them, as the separation warning countdown will reset if a maliciously placed AirTag comes within range of a paired iPhone

However, Apple also plans to release an Android app later this year that will allow anyone with an Android device to immediately know that they are being tracked by AirTag This will help bridge some of the gap between Android users and iPhone users who use AirTag

Meanwhile, iPhone and iPad users would need to update to the latest versions of iOS/iPadOs to be able to receive alerts

These latest measures do not make AirTag security bulletproof, but they do address the main flaw that caused news organizations like the Washington Post to assert that Apple's trackers make it very easy to spy on people without their knowledge

We look forward to trying this update on our own AirTag and seeing if the situation has improved