A car owner admitted they thought ‘the worst’ after finding a seemingly harmless device underneath their car, with people urging them to ‘call the police’.
Taking to the popular R/whatisit thread yesterday (September 18), one user posted a picture of what appeared to be an off-brand personal item tracker, similar to the Apple AirTag.
The Redditor claimed they’d found the mechanism on the underside of their car, writing: “Long story short, some weird texts have been coming through and someone knew things they really shouldn’t.
“I was under my car today and found this taped. I ripped the battery out, thinking the worst.”
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They later stated they found the tech in a hole situated in their tire dust cover.
“I was trying to fix it and I felt this taped inside almost to the engine. It was on a box that had wires going to the battery,” they admitted.
Fellow social media users have been weighing in on the bizarre incident, with one advising not to interact any further.
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“Remove the battery and don't destroy it,” they began, explaining the tracker was designed to ‘keep track of personal possessions’.
“If this was taped to your car, unfortunately, someone is actively stalking you.”
They advised the original poster to file a police report and preserve ‘all communication’ from the person who had been messaging them.
“It's likely from the same source barring massive coincidence,” they added.
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“Most likely the same person who has been sending you weird messages and knowing things they shouldn’t was the one who taped the air tag. Creepy,” echoed a second.
Another social media user claimed: “Stop touching it and call the police!”
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time that this seemingly harmless piece of technology has been used for potentially sinister purposes.
USA Today reported on Friday (October 17) that an Apple AirTag was found taped on the vehicle of two Florida residents, who authorities say were ‘ambushed at gunpoint’ as they returned home in August.
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The attempted robbery, described as a ‘terrifying home invasion’ took place in Odessa, about 25 miles northwest of Tampa, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a press release.
"To be ambushed at gunpoint in the very place you should feel safest is every family’s worst nightmare," Sheriff Chad Chronister explained via the document.
Two people have since been apprehended. They face charges of armed burglary and armed kidnapping, the outlet alleged.
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"Thanks to the work of our detectives, these dangerous criminals are now behind bars where they belong, and the victims, along with our community, can rest a little easier,” Chhronister added.
In June 2022, an Indiana woman admitted to using an Apple AirTag to follow her boyfriend, Andre Smith, whom she later ran over and killed.
She was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections, per the Indianapolis Star.
Apple has previously published advice on what to do if you find an AirTag tracking your movements.
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“AirTag was designed to help people locate their personal belongings, not to track people or another person’s property, and we condemn in the strongest possible terms any malicious use of our products,” the tech giant said in a statement.
“Unwanted tracking has long been a societal problem, and we took this concern seriously in the design of AirTag.”
Apple stated every bit of kit has a unique serial number, while paired AirTags are associated with an Apple ID.
The tech giant can provide the paired account details in response to a subpoena or valid request from law enforcement.
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“We have successfully partnered with [law enforcement] on cases where information we provided has been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator, who was then apprehended and charged,” the statement added.
Ella Scott