iPhone

An iPhone or iPad will detect any item within Bluetooth range that is traveling with you persistently, whether the device works with Apple’s or Google’s crowdsourced ecosystem. An alert helps you take action.

An iPhone or iPad shows an alert that reads “AirTag Found Moving with You” or “Item Detected With You,” depending on which is true. iOS 17.5/iPadOS 17.5 or later can also detect Google trackers.

You might see such an alert because you borrowed something that has an AirTag attached or hidden in it without that person sharing the item with you. For instance, my wife has a Find My item in the car she drives most frequently. We solved the problem with device sharing. See how to share an AirTag with someone else.

The name of an Apple tracker will appear as Person Name’s Name They Gave Device, like “Moses Johnson’s Wallet.” I haven’t determined where Apple pulls the name from, but likely the Apple Account associated with the device—another strong clue to or the actual identity of the tracking person. If the name isn’t retrievable, the generic model type is shown instead. Google items also reveal some identifying information, like their serial number.

Apple told me that the alert appears for someone in three particular circumstances:

• They arrive home, as defined in the Me card in Contacts.
• They arrive at a Significant Location (see sidebar ahead).
• It is the “end of the day” and they haven’t been alerted yet. Apple declined to explain when the end of the day is measured.

Apple once said they planned, in a future release, to provide alerts “sooner” than the scenarios described above. They didn’t define what “sooner” means, however, and never set a timeline for changes. It’s been years!

Because Find My items routinely change the encrypted Bluetooth ID they transmit, this recognition that an item is moving with someone has to happen over what we believe is 12 to 24 hours. Apple doesn’t disclose the interval at which the Bluetooth ID changes.

What you can do about it

The person who receives the alert can ignore it. They may know they have someone else’s Find My item with them, or they may not know why they’re receiving it, and it isn’t of interest to them.

However, the person who sees the alert can tap it to open a screen explaining why it appeared. The screen explains that “The owner can look up its location,” that they can mute the alert, that they can play a sound, and that they can get “visual guidance” to locate it. Tap Continue, and a map appears showing the track detected with a red dashed line.

This map can be viewed later by tapping the item in the Items/Unknown Items Detected With You list in the Items view; see below.

This track is made up of points at which a device has detected that the item is traveling with someone. The device knows only the time-bounded encrypted Bluetooth ID of the item and a location that the device determines.

They can now choose an option:

• Find: Find My guides you to the item, either with Precision Finding with an AirTag (see how to use Precision Finding) or imprecise location via Bluetooth.
• Play Sound: Play Sound is the rare communication that passes from a device to a Find My item. It uses Bluetooth to trigger a sound from the device to help determine its physical location. AirTags produce a mid-level volume pattern of audio; the Chipolo ONE Spot has a 120 dB emitter that is pretty impossible to not pay attention to. Other Find My items vary from loud to extremely loud.
• Pause Tracking Notifications: Pause Safety Alerts doesn’t disable tracking, but stops the device from popping up the “Detected/Moving with You” warning. Strangers can tap to disable notifications for a day; people in your Family Sharing group see the additional option to pause indefinitely. (I recommend sharing an item in this case.)

If you don’t take an immediate action on an item that’s been identified as traveling with you, it appears in the Items list in a new category, Items Detected With You.

I’d argue your best strategy is to find the device using Find and Play Sound, then use the Find My app’s ability to learn more about the item as described in how to identify an AirTag you have found.

You can use the native Find My app on an iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch (the Find Items app) to find nearby Find My items. See how to identify an AirTag you have found.

With Android 6 or later and a 2024 update, you should receive alerts about Apple and Google tracking devices with no additional effort on your part. The message and options are similar to those on an iPhone or iPad.

There’s also a manual scanning app called Tracker Detect that Apple released for Android. It requires Android 9 or later. See how to identify an AirTag you have found.

Why an AirTag chirps alone

The iPhone or iPad requirement for the previous notification leaves out people with older hardware or who use an Android phone that doesn’t have Apple’s Tracker Detect app installed (or no smartphone at all). For them, Apple has the device itself issue a secondary warning.

Whenever an item becomes separated from its owner, it starts an internal timer. At a random point 8 to 24 hours later, the AirTag or third-party item plays a sound—but only when it’s moved. This timer is internal to the device, so it’s not reliant on other hardware tracking Bluetooth IDs over time.

Some third-party trackers produce a sound dramatically louder than the 1st-generation AirTag. Apple increased audio volume with the 2nd-generation AirTag, which the company says is 50% louder. While the company declined to answer questions about loudness and anti-stalking measures, it’s clear that the more intense sound benefits both finding an AirTag you placed intentionally and one placed without your knowledge.

This requirement that the device be moved strikes a balance between deterring stalking and allowing the use of Find My items for items that you want to remain in place without you around. Because the owner of an AirTag or other item knows where they left it the last time their paired device was nearby, the only information they can derive if it isn’t moved, is that it has remained in place. That could reveal some “negative knowledge”: that someone’s purse or car, say, remained in place. Yet, the unwanted-tracking party would never be sure whether or not it were moved and made a great racket. That risk will help deter misuse.

A great justification for the movement requirement comes from an example a friend gave me. His son wanted to put an AirTag on his bike when he parked it at school for more than eight hours at a time. If the bike started keening while left behind, this might lead passersby or university police or security to investigate.

The same is true if you’re traveling or living with other people. If you or others leave bags or items behind while elsewhere for extended periods, you and they don’t want a sound to go off in the middle of the night, say, or from an obscure closet.

Significant Locations stay on your device

Your iPhone or iPad takes note of places you frequently visit, and some others it thinks are “significant.” I went to a sushi place once, was there for a few minutes picking up takeout, and my phone decided that was significant.

Significant Locations are stored only on your devices, and are synced using end-to-end encryption. Apple says they never have access to them, and that iPhones, iPads, and Macs use them entirely on-device.

These locations are stored in Settings/System Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > System Services (tap on an iPhone or iPad; click Details on a Mac). The label reads Significant Locations & Routes starting in iOS 26/iPadOS 26 and Tahoe; it’s called Significant Locations in earlier releases. Tap the item or click Details next to it on a Mac. You can view the places you consider significant, disable the feature, or clear the locations currently stored.

Where to get help

There are many organizations beyond law enforcement eager to help people trapped in situations of domestic abuse or child subject to violence and an unsafe environment. For adults in the United States, that includes the National Domestic Violence Hotline; for children or those concerned about their welfare in the United States and Canada, the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline.

For those being stalked, one starting point is Safehope. It’s more likely you will need the help of police or federal authorities. Local police departments have their own paths to navigate, but for online or cyber stalking, it may be better to start with the FBI.

If the person you are worried about may be watching your device, use one they cannot see. Removing a tracker or turning off sharing can be noticed, and advocates warn that it can make a situation worse rather than better, so it is worth talking to someone before you act.

Pairing an AirTag is remarkably simple. Here’s how.

Set up an AirTag

1. Unwrap the plastic around the AirTag and then pull the connected strip that’s part of it, preventing the battery from touching the internal contacts. The AirTag makes a “tweetle” sound (something like “tuh TWEE tuh WEE dull”).
2. Hold a 2nd-generation AirTag close to an iPhone or iPad with iOS 26.2.1/iPadOS 26.2.1 or later installed; a first-generation AirTag can be held near an iPhone or iPad with iOS 14.5/iPadOS 14.5 or later. The device recognizes an unpaired AirTag using NFC.
3. This prompts the phone to display a connection dialog. Tap Connect.
4. You can then name it and assign an emoji, from a preset list or a custom one.
5. Once the AirTag is paired, Apple warns you about its appropriate use and potential legal consequences. Tap Agree.
6. Apple provides a summary of details about the item and actions you can take.
7. Tap View in Find My App, or Done, to finish. Third-party items show a slightly different list here.

Before you ask: No, there’s no way to pair a 2nd-generation AirTag with a device that isn’t running those minimum versions of iOS 26/iPadOS 26.

Change the name or emoji of an AirTag

1. Go to the Find My app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Items , tap the AirTag whose name or emoji you want to change, then tap .
3. Tap “Change Name and Emoji.”
4. Choose a name from the list or choose Custom Name to type a name and select an emoji.
5. Tap .

View more details about an AirTag

After you add an AirTag to your Apple Account, you can view more details about it in the Find My app.

1. Go to the Find My app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Items , tap the AirTag you want to see more details about, then tap .
3. Tap the address of the AirTag to see the model, serial number, and the firmware version.

If the battery level is low, a message appears below the location of the AirTag. You can also see a low battery indicator next to the name of the AirTag in the Items list.

If the AirTag isn’t automatically recognized, tap the plus button in the upper-right corner of the People, Devices, or Items list at the bottom of the screen and tap Add AirTag.

The warning about being linked to your Apple Account is pertinent, as Apple doesn’t consider illegal use of an AirTag as something that it preserves user privacy over. See how Apple and Google detect an unwanted AirTag.

The limit is 32 items

Apple limits you to having access to 32 items in Find My, which includes both the ones you’ve paired and items shared by others. However, that limit is lower than it appears because earbud versions of AirPods count as two or more items. The AirPods and AirPods Pro 1 count as two; AirPods Pro 2 and later count as three. (It still seems unlikely most people will surpass 32.) While AirPods and Beats hardware show up in the Devices tab, they’re items at heart; see how to find a lost iPhone, Mac or AirPods.

For each Find My item, you can opt to share with up to five other people. Apple expanded this in late 2024 with Share Item Location, a secure way to create an expiring link for a lost item that you can share with “airlines and trusted people.”

The sharing limit of up to five other people matches Family Sharing group limits, which can have six people total, but you don’t have to share with others if you’re in a group.

Accepting a Find My item sharing invitation means you won’t be notified in the future when the item is near you. Conversely, you will always be able to see the item in your Items list.

Apple lets you share an AirTag only with someone who uses a phone number or email address associated with an Apple Account, or a contact in your address book that contains an Apple Account-linked phone number or email address.

Share an AirTag

1. Go to the Find My app and click or tap the Items button.
2. Select a Find My item.
3. On a Mac, click the More button in macOS 27, or the Info button in macOS 26 or earlier.
4. Click or tap Add Person beneath Share This AirTag/item.
5. Apple alerts you about the risks and benefits of sharing a Find My item.
6. Click or tap Continue to proceed, or Not Now or Cancel to exit.
7. In the Share Item view, you see all your contacts. You can:
   • Click or tap a contact that is shown in blue. That indicates an Apple Account-linked element in the contact. (Gray entries have already been added.)
   • Click or tap the plus button to view the full contacts list and search within it. These entries are not color guided for Apple Account.
   • At the To: prompt, start entering a phone number or email address. You’ll see matching contacts until you pass a point at which there is no match.
8. Click or tap the blue checkmark button..

The person you selected appears with a Pending label until they accept. You can click or tap their entry to withdraw the invitation. This item now appears under the oddly named Items I Shared label in Find My.

If you tap a gray entry in the contacts list or try to add someone through another means whose email or phone number lacks a link to an Apple Account, Find My displays an alert that the person isn’t eligible for sharing. I’ve also seen a bug in which nothing happens—a brief stutter and no error—but that person is not added.

When someone shares an item with you

If you’ve had an item shared with you, the shared item appears under Items Shared With Me. Find My reveals the same information as the owner sees on their own devices. On the item’s sheet of actions, click or tap the owner’s name to view the contact associated with them. If you want to stop the item being shared with you, click or tap Remove at the bottom of its detailed view and then, after being told the owner can still track it and you’ll get notifications again when it’s near, click or tap Remove to complete the process.

For someone who has accepted, tap or click their name in the item’s sheet. This presents a simple dialog that lets you tap or click View Friend to show them in Find My’s People view if they’ve shared their location with you; or, you can tap or click Remove and confirm removing their permission to see the item. Click Cancel to exit or tap outside the dialog on an iPhone or iPad.

Share contact details instead

If you want to provide more information to someone finding something of yours, you can use Show Contact Info. Also found under Lost AirTag or Lost Item, the Show Contact Info item lets you add either your phone number or an email address. See what someone sees when they find your lost device.

If you cannot share an item

If you want to share an item and can’t—either sharing it to someone or accessing a shared invitation—it may be one of these reasons:

• Both the sharer and recipient must be running at least iOS 17, iPadOS 17, or macOS 14.
• You can view shared items, but not initiate sharing, on an Apple Watch.
• Only people with the 26.2.1 or later releases of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, or watchOS can view shared 2nd-generation AirTags. See AirTag 2 vs AirTag.

Stop sharing an AirTag

If you’re the owner of an AirTag and no longer want to share it, you can stop sharing in Find My.

1. Go to the Find My app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Items , tap the name of the item you’re sharing, then tap .
3. Tap the name of the person you’re sharing it with.
4. Tap Stop Sharing, then tap Stop Sharing again.

The person you were sharing with no longer sees the AirTag’s location, but may still get tracking notifications when the AirTag is moving with them.

Efforts to find unknown AirTags and other trackers received a big boost with an industry standard released in 2024 by Apple and Google. Called Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers (DULT), the two companies have implemented it in their ecosystems.

A few other companies expressed initial support for this specification, but only Chipolo and Pebblebee have incorporated the required features into aspects of their apps and hardware that aren’t part of the Apple Find My and Google Find Hub requirements. The rest of the industry has fallen down entirely—but lacks effective crowdsourced tracking due to a small installed base.

One of the only significant elements of the standard that wasn’t part of Apple’s existing framework is a requirement that each ecosystem’s operator requires an email address and phone number from a tracker’s registered user, which wasn’t necessarily the case across all current crowdsourced trackers.

When someone discovers or is alerted to a tracker near them, an app can access those details. Both the email address and the phone number are masked. The spec explains the reasoning:

The specification explains the reasoning. In many cases the person being tracked already knows the tracker’s owner. An obfuscated email address or phone number gives a victim “some level of information on the owner”. It also protects owners merely separated from their property.

Makers must maintain a database of serial numbers and associated phone numbers and email addresses under this proposal, and provide the registered details to law enforcement on request—no subpoena or other judicial process required. However, there’s also no process noted for how the email and phone number are validated. We know that Apple associates your Apple Account information with an AirTag and Find My items, and those require validation.

This raises some privacy concerns. On the one hand, we should preserve our digital and real-world privacy as much as possible, and Apple has been a stalwart defender of our rights against companies and governments in that regard.

However, on the other hand, when there’s clear evidence of potential criminality and the likelihood of harm or violence—like someone finding a tracking device they don’t own placed in their stuff—making information available to police with proper credentials to pursue the tracking person seems desirable. The issue in practice will be how well companies mediate providing government access to the tracker registration database.

How the Google stalking alerts differ

When Google announced their Find Hub Bluetooth tracking devices in 2024, they explained that crowdsourced relaying of location would be much more restricted than with Apple’s network:

• A tracker’s location is relayed only when it’s in what Google calls a high-traffic area, like an airport, café, “busy footpaths,” or public transit. This prevents location tracking in places like homes or on a solo bike ride or drive.
• If you let Google know your home address via your Google Account (a wasp’s nest of privacy issues, to be sure), any Android device you have won’t relay location information for trackers when you’re in or near your home.
• A tracker’s owner can’t continuously request the device’s location. Google hasn’t provided details, but says they “rate limit” and “throttle” requests, as most lost items remain in stationary locations.

These are excellent additions to the privacy and safety arsenal that I hope Apple ultimately adopts as well.

What the reports actually showed

An odd report came from the York Regional Police in Ontario, Canada, in December 2021: car thieves were using AirTags to track down and steal cars. The police said they found AirTags used to “mark” expensive vehicles in public locations (and offered a photo of one instance) so that thieves could locate them later in easier-to-steal locations, like a public street or driveway.

Following this report, news media and other police departments issued a flurry of accounts of both car thieves and stalkers using AirTags. Some reports are sketchy; some lead with a strong headline, but then note that it was probably a false positive. In one case, a 17-year-old discovered her mother was tracking her. How prevalent is this, really?

Apple responded to these reports and others on Feb. 10, 2022, with a statement called “An update on AirTag and unwanted tracking.” Along with a host of improvements, nearly all rolled out in 2022, Apple also noted, “Based on our knowledge and on discussions with law enforcement, incidents of AirTag misuse are rare; however, each instance is one too many.” (Apple also updated their unwanted tracking support document.)

For a period, the phenomenon seemed to disappear, in 2023 and 2024. However, I’ve seen a new resurgence of reporting. The scope of the issue is impossible to gauge.

Police suggest the reverse use

Many police and sheriff’s departments suggest turning AirTags around: to help recover cars and be aware of thefts, law-enforcement groups suggest sticking an AirTag in your car. In fact, after a huge surge in thefts of certain Kia and Hyundai models due to a security flaw, the New York City mayor gave out 500 AirTags donated by a nonprofit to residents in heavily affected areas. Police warn, however, not to try to recover your own car; this has led to deaths and injury.

Regardless of how often AirTags are misused, Apple suggests contacting law enforcement if you feel endangered. All Find My items provide a little help here, as you can connect to a webpage associated with the item and see the last four digits of the phone number associated with the device. You may recognize the number, or the police may use it to track down the person who is tracking you.

An AirTag makes it easy: you tap or hold the AirTag near anything with an NFC reader, and it prompts with a webpage link. For other devices, a finder has to go through a multi-step process (see how to identify an AirTag you have found).

Where to get help

There are many organizations beyond law enforcement eager to help people trapped in situations of domestic abuse or child subject to violence and an unsafe environment. For adults in the United States, that includes the National Domestic Violence Hotline; for children or those concerned about their welfare in the United States and Canada, the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline.

For those being stalked, one starting point is Safehope. It’s more likely you will need the help of police or federal authorities. Local police departments have their own paths to navigate, but for online or cyber stalking, it may be better to start with the FBI.

If the person you are worried about may be watching your device, use one they cannot see. Removing a tracker or turning off sharing can be noticed, and advocates warn that it can make a situation worse rather than better, so it is worth talking to someone before you act.

Apple lets you create a link you can share beyond the maximum of five people who can have continuous shared access. You can create a link to track an item that you can share with anyone.

The link expires after seven days, or you can disable it manually. It immediately stops working as soon as you are within Bluetooth range of the AirTag or Find My item, or if someone you shared the link with is close to it. Airlines have also added a way to use this link for baggage traffic, either for normal use or when your baggage is misplaced.

This requires at least iOS 18.2/iPadOS 18.2 or 15.2 Sequoia on your sharing device and the person who wants to view the link.

Create the AirTag luggage link

Share Item Location under Lost AirTag or Item is the pathway to obtain this link. Tap or click that label to start. First, you’re given a disclosure about what someone with the URL will see. If the item is nearby, you can’t obtain this URL and see an alert about it. Otherwise, tap or click Continue.

Find My generates a URL on a screen labeled Item Location Ready to Share. Tap or click the copy button to copy the URL or tap or click Share Link to use an option on the share sheet.

Apple continues to preserve end-to-end Find My item privacy, even when you’re sharing a link. In fine print, Find My notes, “At least one of your iPhone, iPad, or Mac devices needs to be online to provide updated locations.” That’s because the only way to retrieve the crowdsourced location is via one of those devices.

After the link is created, you can return to the same location to copy the URL. If you want to stop sharing, tap or click Stop Sharing Item Location. Disabled links can’t be reused: Apple generates unique links for each shared item every time.

What the other person sees

If the recipient has an iPhone, iPad, or Mac with an operating system recent enough to support Find My item sharing, the link—labeled Find Lost Item in some contexts, such as when sent via Messages—will prompt to open in the Find My app. Tap or click Continue in Find My. In the Find My app, you see an alert that lost items appear only when viewed in this fashion; tap or click Continue. Finally, you see the item tracked.

For people opening the link on any device other than a supported Apple one, they are taken to a webpage that automatically updates when the item’s reported location changes.

Share the link wisely! Anyone in possession of the link can use it to track the item’s current location for as long as the link is valid.

Once an item is found, Apple automatically disables the links and notifies the lost item’s owner.

Give the link to an airline

Share Item Location can also be used in a privacy-protecting way with airlines and baggage-handling services to report a missing or delayed bag. Apple said 50 airlines had signed on to support the feature. The last count, as of February 2026, was that 36 were online, including American, Delta, and United in the United States, along with major airlines worldwide. However, there’s no official list.

Apple says that safeguards will be in place at airlines so that only a limited number of people with authenticated logins can view shared tracking information.

If your bag is delayed on a supported airline:

1. In a native Find My app, use the process above to generate a shared item link.
2. Open the airline’s iPhone or iPad app or go to their website. Find the delayed-baggage form.
3. In the field labeled Find My in some variation, paste the URL.

Because the 2nd-generation AirTag requires version 26.2.1 or later of Apple’s operating systems to use this kind of item tracking, it is possible that some airlines and baggage-handling services still don’t support these newer trackers. Big organizations tend to lag in updating their devices. I haven’t heard any reports, however.

AirTags and other accessories are locked to the phone they’re paired with. Apple calls this Find My Lock instead of Activation Lock, which is available for Apple devices, like iPhones and Macs. (See how Activation Lock protects a lost or stolen device.)

You can remove an AirTag from an Apple Account using the native Find My app but only on an iPhone or iPad linked to your iCloud account. You cannot use a Mac to remove a Find My item pairing; Apple has not explained why.

Go to the Find My app, tap the Items button, tap the AirTag, and at the bottom of the sheet with actions, tap Remove. Apple lets you know this means someone else can use it by pairing it. Apple also alerts you with shared items about others being unable to see it after removal.

If the AirTag is within Bluetooth range of the device you’re using to remove it from your Apple Account, it is automatically reset and ready to be paired with another device. Otherwise, it has to be physically reset after removal. Apple has instructions in a support document, but I found them a little difficult to follow in their formulation.

An AirTag remains connected to its paired device and unusable with another device until or unless it is removed from your Apple Account. Resetting it has no effect on pairing.

I highly recommend avoiding purchasing used AirTags or Find My items, as there’s no way for a seller to provide an assurance that the item has had its Find My Lock removed. At worst, only buy from a source that promises a full refund and free return, including shipping costs, if the item can’t be used.

I’ve sometimes found I have to restart my iPhone to re-pair an AirTag with it after removing it.

Here’s what I hope is a clearer sequence:

Reset your AirTag

1. Remove the back cover: Holding the glossy white front, push down to twist the metal back panel counter-clockwise. It only needs to move a small distance before the cover pops off.
2. Remove the battery: Inside, you’ll see its small coin cell battery. Remove the battery, making note of the right side up: the + sign on the battery will always face you.
3. Press in a sequence: This next step may seem peculiar, because the back cover remains off. Put the battery back in place and then press down lightly. The AirTag makes a faint bleep. Repeat this four times: remove the battery so it makes no contact, put it back in, press it lightly, and wait for a sound. The fifth time you do this, the sound will be slightly different. That means the reset operation completed successfully.
4. Reattach back cover: Now you can look at the cover to see the extended tabs and align those with the hole in the top. Press in and then rotate the cover clockwise against its top until it’s firmly in place.

The small size of the AirTag, its cover, and the battery within are all choking hazards for small children or pets. If you have either or have visitors with them, keep track of loose AirTags or parts.

Now you can pair with another iPhone or iPad.

Stop an AirTag transmitting

Removing an AirTag from an account stops it from relaying location data. However, if you want the device to stop sending any signal, remove the cover and the battery.

In a pinch, you can disable an AirTag’s or third-party item’s capability to transmit its signal by wrapping it in aluminum foil or putting it in a bag designed to block electromagnetic fields (a so-called Faraday cage). These items emit fairly weak Bluetooth signals, so the foil approach will, uh, foil attempts to track you if you can’t figure out how to remove the battery or you want to leave the device intact to give to law enforcement.

You can find advice all over the internet about how to disable the sound-producing part of an AirTag. I won’t link to any such advice, and I recommend you avoid it in nearly all cases. Why? Because the intent isn’t, as often stated on these webpages, how to keep an AirTag from bothering you. Rather, it’s clearly advice on producing a more effective electronic stalker. (Apple also may have made it harder to remove the sound-producing component in the 2nd-generation AirTag, but the company declines to discuss that.)

You might have a perfectly good reason to dampen the sound! But in some countries (or even certain cities, states, or regions within a country), unless an AirTag is continuously within your control, disabling the intended audio alert could run afoul of privacy and anti-stalking laws and get you into real trouble. (For when this sound occurs, see what an “AirTag Found Moving With You” alert means.)