Use caution when tracking your stolen vehicle with AirTags

New York City police recently gave out free AirTags to cut down on vehicle theft, and just days after that announcement San Antonio law enforcement has advised against using the trackers.

Vehicle thefts are on the rise in some states, so much so that New York City handed out free AirTags to residents so they can track their vehicles. Vehicles are also being stolen in San Antonio, Texas, but police urge caution when using Apple's tracking technology.

Victims may be tempted to use an AirTag to track their vehicle to the thief's location to confront them, but that can be dangerous. Instead, victims of vehicle thefts should report the crime to the police as soon as possible, said officer Ricardo Guzman, a spokesman for the San Antonio Police Department.

In the meantime, if someone discovers a stolen vehicle without the assistance of law enforcement, they too should call the police right away, according to the San Antonio Express-News.

Five Kia models, including the Optima, Soul, Forte, Rio, and Sportage, topped the list of most stolen vehicles in March. With the Sonata and Elantra, which was the most stolen vehicle, Hyundais also made the list. The second-most stolen cars were Ford F-series pickup trucks.

According to San Antonio police, some social media videos showing how to steal Kia and Hyundai model cars that lack an engine immobilizer — an electronic security feature that prevents a vehicle from being started without the proper key — may be a factor in the rise in vehicle thefts.

Hyundai has a free anti-theft software upgrade for specific models in response to increasing thefts. Nearly four million vehicles are eligible, with models as far back as 2011.

14 Comments

ihatescreennames 1971 comments · 19 Years

About 1 year ago

It seems they don’t differ. The NYC handed out AirTags and told people if their car is stolen to immediately contact police. In NYC and San Antonio the police are delivering the same message.

chadbag 2026 comments · 13 Years

JP234 said:

Yep, no matter where you live in this country, no matter how well you're armed, you should call the cops. A law abiding citizen has no business engaging in potentially violent or fatal interactions with criminals.

You shouldn’t go looking for trouble but call the police. (Ie you AirTag equipped stolen vehicle).

However the above statement could be taken as all inclusive (not just AirTag equipped cars being tracked). Unfortunately we don’t always get a chance to choose when a criminal engages us. He comes barreling into my home (home invasion) the cops will be called asap but the criminal will also be violently engaged immediately.

mikethemartian 1485 comments · 18 Years

Dooofus said:

I believe it is in the interest of the police to encourage AirTag use. They get credit for solving car thefts without having to doing the traditional police work it would take to track down the thieves.

I doubt that most police departments actually investigate the majority of car thefts unless it is associated with a more serious crime where someone’s safety or life were endangered.

AppleZulu 2174 comments · 8 Years

I keep an AirTag in my car. It's not terribly useful for sorting out where you left the car in a parking garage, as you can already see the car before FindMy can lock in on the tag. It's more useful for on-street parking and being able to occasionally check in to see if the car is still where I left it. I also have a transmission immobilizer that requires advanced training not only to start the car, but also to get it moving and keep it going. Most thieves will just look in the car, see the immobilizer controls and move on. (Some people call it a stick-shift).

22july2013 3725 comments · 11 Years

If you believe

TV shows like "FBI", all the police need is your license plate number, and if the car is a recent model and "has GPS", the FBI can instantly track the location of your vehicle. They do this in nearly every episode of FBI. Therefore, Apple Tags won't help the police at all.