“Ertags” from “Apple” a technology designed to address the problem of forgetfulness, and it has become a tool for car theft

When Apple launched its AirTags last June, many forgetful users were excited that they would finally be able to track their keys and wallets via their smartphone.

But the biggest pessimists did not expect this invention, which was made to not forget things, to turn into a tool in criminal operations such as car theft.

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Last week, Canadian police announced that criminals are using a new method to track and steal luxury vehicles via Airtags.

Police revealed that in the past three months, 5 similar incidents have occurred in the York region of Ontario.

Smart theft

According to police investigations, car thieves use a 5-step Grand Theft Auto plan:

-They place Airtags in a hidden location with the target car while it is parked in public places, such as shopping malls and parking lots, for example, and can be placed in an external power socket.

-After that they can trace the vehicle to the victim's residence.

-They usually use screwdrivers to get into the car, making sure the alarm isn't triggered, of course.

-Once in the car, they plug the reprogramming device (there are several types on Amazon) into the key recognition port under the dashboard, and reprogram the car to accept a key owned by thieves.

-They start the car, and then drive away.

Is the problem with Airtags?

Before you get angry and blame technology, remember that Airtags isn't the first location-tracking device in the world that can connect to your phone, as criminals have had these tools for a while.

In fact, Airtags is the least used device in these criminal acts.

To avoid potential misuse, Apple offers two security features to alert you to unmonitored Airtags around you.

Feature 1: The sound that Airtags makes at random intervals between 8 and 24 hours if you move away from its owner.

Two: You can discover the hidden Airtags sign inside your car, but only if you have an iPhone.

And while the features are good, they don't prevent theft, as some Canadian car owners have discovered.

And Apple could do more to secure Airtags' privacy, given the size of the Find My network they use.

To be fair, the criminal use of technology cannot be blamed on Apple, nor can you blame your email provider if you fall victim to a phishing email scam.

The dilemma we face is that the more advanced technology we get, the more creative criminals become and they have more tricks to stay one step ahead.

However, we cannot live in a world without technology, so we have to take some precautions when it comes to technology-related theft cases.

What can you do to protect your car?

Canadian police have listed some tips that car owners can follow to make sure they don't fall victim to similar car thefts.

You can try very simple things, such as parking your car inside a closed garage or regularly checking it for any suspicious devices, or you can take another step and install a lock on your car's data port to prevent it from getting to strangers.

After the first and second generations of the web, what is the third generation for it?

Many people remember how their first experience was in using the first generation of the web, which was followed by a second, more sophisticated network, up to the third generation of it.

In a report published by the French newspaper Le Point, writers Guillaume Gralet and Catherine Huguet said that the first generation of the Web was a term coined in 1990 and resulted in the first version of the mainstream Internet, and most of the sites created were intended for reading and non-interactive.

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In 2014, the second generation of the web was launched, which allowed users to interact via the Internet, and social networks were its most prominent products.

According to writer Tim Ferriss, author of the book “Tools of the Great”, we moved from a reading-only mode to a reading and writing mode, and at the same time, communication platforms dominated us, and the question now is: Are we now witnessing the emergence of the third generation of the Web?

In the event that the third generation of the Web is still under development, it can be defined as an Internet that depends on the decentralized performance that the block chain technology allows, which means that the ownership of sites can be shared between technology makers and those who use them.

Block chain

A block chain is a distributed database that has the ability to manage an ever-growing list of records called blocks, and each block contains a timestamp and a link to the previous block.

And the block chain is designed so that it can preserve the data stored in it and prevent it from being modified, meaning that when a piece of information is stored in the block chain, it cannot be modified later.

"Conceptually, the third generation of the web is a different version of the Internet that relies on public blockchains and crypto-ecosystems," says Martha Bennett, an analyst at Forrester Research. digital, such as cryptocurrency.

“The third generation of the web allows people who don’t know each other to work together using a rewards system that rewards participants for their contributions to digital goods, and these digital goods can be cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin,” says Chris Dixon, Entrepreneur and Partner at Andreessen Horowitz. or non-replaceable symbols, such as a title deed for a work of art.

Pierre-Etienne Baumeer, creator of Arago - a digital gallery that offers the possibility to purchase images in the form of non-fungible symbols - said that creators will be able to speak directly to their customers, and will not need platforms or media.

For his part, Frederic Montagnion, the creator of the Ariane Protocol - which promotes the direct relationship between brands and consumers - said that the reallocation movement would make the struggle for digital sovereignty possible.

Google is warning Android users that apps may be spying on them. And it revealed a new feature in the new “Android 12” system that alerts users when the microphone or camera is activated.

This feature was added by Google to phones in the latest update to the “Android 12” system, which is similar to the warning already present on the “iPhone” devices of the company “Apple” (Apple). So, if you don't get this latest Android update, you won't be able to see it.

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The new feature appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, where you can see the camera or microphone icon when an app tries to access either of them, respectively. The feature prevents apps from being surreptitiously listening, or even viewing through the camera.

You can also see a permanent history of which apps have access to your camera, microphone, or location, as this information is available in the new privacy dashboard within Settings.

It is now also possible to completely deactivate the microphone and camera via the phone through the settings section.

It is worth noting that seeing these symbols does not necessarily mean that an espionage operation has occurred. Sometimes, the app really needs to use the camera, like the Instagram app.

But if you notice that your camera is being used by a strange app, it could mean that you are being spied on.

Internet experts have discovered countless apps that have been able to improperly access the camera on Android phones, so make sure you are using Android version 12, and stay wary of any malware.

And if you suspect something is wrong, you should check the permissions of the app in the settings. For example, you can deny certain apps access to your microphone or camera. And if you are worried, you can delete the app completely.