New York City tells car owners to use AirTags to stop theft, will hand out 500 freebies

May 1, 2023

3 min read

As New York City battles with growing numbers of car thefts, officials are turning to Apple’s AirTag item tracker and drones as potential solutions. In fact, city officials and NYPD officers will be dolling out 500 AirTags to citizens to help discourage and counteract carjackings in the city…

New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the AirTag program at a press conference this weekend, calling it a “really amazing piece of ingenuity.” The 500 AirTags that will be handed out to New York City citizens were donated by the nonprofit organization Association for Better New York.

For context, car thefts in New York City have increased 13% so far this year compared to the same time period in 2022. City officials hope that more citizens putting AirTags discreetly in their cars will help deter thieves, as an AirTag would make that car easily trackable by its owner.

New York City officials will concentrate most of the AirTag donations to the Bronx, where grand larceny auto has increased 24% so far this year compared to the same time last year.

“This simple device, this simple AirTag, hidden in a car location that a person is not aware, of is an excellent tracking device,” Mayor Adams said. “It’s easy to monitor. You can see in real-time where the vehicle is located.”

The 21st century calls for 21st century policing. AirTags in your car will help us recover your vehicle if it’s stolen. We’ll use our drones, our StarChase technology & good old fashion police work to safely recover your stolen car. Help us help you, get an AirTag. #GSD pic.twitter.com/fTfk8p4lye

— NYPD Chief of Department (@NYPDChiefOfDept) April 30, 2023

“Your phone will be alerted. You know someone’s in your car who’s not supposed to be, and/or it’s stolen. You call 911 as fast as you can,” NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell added. “You tell the officers involved ‘I have an AirTag,’ and they will immediately with citywide apprehension apparatus will start putting that tag citywide.”

There are a few flaws with New York City’s plan to use AirTags to prevent car thefts. For instance, AirTag is designed to automatically emit a sound after being separated from its owner within an interval of eight hours and 24 hours. When an AirTag automatically emits a sound, iOS will also show an alert on nearby iPhones.

Even though NYC officials are encouraging car owners to put AirTags in a discreet spot in the car, the sound and iPhone notification will eventually make thieves aware they are being tracked.

What do you think of New York City’s plans to rely, in part, on AirTags to reduce car theft? Let us know in the comments.