Another Chicagoan Comes Forward, Says Apple AirTag Was Used To Track And Stalk Her
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Imagine going to pick up your groceries when you suddenly receive a message on your phone that you're being followed.
CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey has been tracking what's many are called AirTag stalking, wherein people use tiny Apple AirTags on unsuspecting victims.
On Tuesday, another victim came forward. She said she wished she had taken the alert she received more seriously.
The woman, Elizabeth, got the notification to her phone as she was pulling out of a grocery store parking lot in Edgewater with her toddler. She had driven 35 minutes before she realized an AirTag was still tracking her location.
"I think it's an easy tool to track people and to do it relatively anonymously — and that's concerning," Elizabeth said.
She is talking about an AirTag - a tracking device designed to work as a key finder. But since its launch in the spring, more and more Chicagoans are finding that the devices are tracking them personally instead.
Elizabeth was shopping Monday afternoon when she got the ping to her phone. Five miles in the car later, she said: "I could see on the map - the FindMy app - that the AirTag had actually dropped off in the street not far from my house - and I just felt really creeped out."
She is far from alone.
Last week, we told you about a Chicago woman who found an AirTag in her purse after receiving a series of notifications from Apple that someone was tracking her movements across the city and the suburbs. Apple says they discourage this type of tracking, which is why you'll get a notification if an unknown AirTag is seen moving with you over time.
But Elizabeth said more should be done to educate the public.
Elizabeth: "In my case, I didn't realize, hey, you should probably drive straight to a police station and have them check your car for it before going home so that someone can't track you."
Hickey: "Is that, looking back, what you would have done?"
Elizabeth: "Yeah, looking back I absolutely would have."
Elizabeth would also like to see more voices join the larger conversation.
"I would like to see the people who created it - those who invest in it and sell it on their platforms = to find solutions to protect their users so that this isn't being used to harm other people," she said.
Apple does have a page on their website dedicated to what to do if you get an alert that an AirTag is moving with you. It also includes instructions for Android devices.