AirTag 2: Update improves stalking protection

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Apple has adjusted the AirTag 2's warning tone via a firmware update. This should make it significantly easier to detect third-party trackers during precision searches.

Apple released a new firmware update for the AirTag 2 yesterday – the first update since its launch earlier this year. According to the official release notes, version 3.0.45 includes one key change: the sound played when an unknown AirTag is detected has been revised. The goal is to make it easier to locate an unfamiliar tracker during a precision search.

Apple describes the change in the release notes simply as an adjustment to the warning tone for unwanted tracking, supplemented by the usual bug fixes. The notes don't specify exactly how the tone has changed—whether it's louder, higher-pitched, or its frequency has been adjusted. However, it's clear that Apple intends to further improve the signal's detectability.

A known problem that has plagued Apple for years

Adjusting the alert tone is not a new approach. Back in 2022, Apple released a firmware update for the first AirTag that optimized the tracking alert tone. At that time, the tone sequence was modified to use the loudest tones more frequently, making it easier to locate an unknown AirTag.

The issue of unwanted tracking has plagued Apple since the introduction of the first AirTag in 2021. Despite integrated safeguards—including iPhone notifications upon detection of an unknown tracker and automatic alert tones—the AirTag has repeatedly been misused for stalking. Reports of inadequate security measures quickly put pressure on Apple to continuously improve its anti-stalking features.

What the successor already does better

With the AirTag 2, Apple has already made significant improvements to the hardware. According to Apple, the new speaker examined in the teardown is up to 50 percent louder than its predecessor. Additionally, the speaker has been designed to be significantly more difficult to tamper with – on the first AirTag, it was relatively easy to remove or disable the speaker.

Furthermore, the AirTag 2 features a second-generation ultra-wideband chip that enables precision searching at up to 50 percent greater distances. Combined with the now-adapted alert tone, this creates a system that not only detects unauthorized trackers faster but also makes them significantly easier to locate.

For AirTag 2 only

According to available information, the update only applies to the AirTag 2. The first-generation AirTag will not receive the change. Anyone wanting to know which firmware version is installed on their AirTag can do so in a few steps using the "Find My" app on their iPhone. check. The update will be installed automatically as soon as the AirTag is within Bluetooth range of a connected iPhone.

With this update, Apple demonstrates that the fight against tracker misuse doesn't end with product launch, but remains an ongoing process – even with the already improved AirTag 2. (Image: Shutterstock / VladZaharov)