Apple AirTags.

I'm looking forward to an affordable cat collar for this (not a collar that costs as much as the device itself!). I'm feeding some strays in my porch (and yes I've just managed to spay both of them) - it'd be interesting to see where they roam. I've contemplated GPS trackers, but they're much too big for a cat and battery life is only 5-7 days if it sends hourly beacons. If it sends a beacon every 5 minutes, it'll only run for 1-2 days.

I'm guessing people will come up with all kinds of unique uses for these things that Apple never quite had in mind. As long as the cats roam somewhere in range of an iOS device this should work, plus they are waterproof and shockproof.

Nice to hear you hear you are looking after stray cats, as well as going to the trouble and expense of having them spayed. :)
 
well the easy id is tied into a key card, which if you have that give access to anything, so these guys installed keyloggers on public computers like libraries ASO

There they got peoples SSN and the general PW for easy id, then all they had to do was order a new keycard, and then intercept that in peoples mail box.
Then they could do anything they wanted from diverting peoples pension / welfare / pay check, to make loans in other peoples names and buy cars ASO

They now changed so you cant just order a new keycard, and also so you cant divert how many ever bank accounts into 1 account.
But IMO the system are still flawed, so think experts, but they dont want to fix it as it is getting replaced in a year or two, and for sure no one will ever be responsible for the mess we have right now.

Just ome of many - many things that make me have absolute NO trust in anything IT related when government are involved, pretty much anything they done in the past 20 - 30 years have been a mess, some times a working mess, other times a piece of software costing 500 Mill DKkr that just get thrown in a trash bin.
 
I'm guessing people will come up with all kinds of unique uses for these things that Apple never quite had in mind. As long as the cats roam somewhere in range of an iOS device this should work, plus they are waterproof and shockproof.

Nice to hear you hear you are looking after stray cats, as well as going to the trouble and expense of having them spayed. :)

Well spaying is never an easy decision. If you don't do it, there's an endless stream of kittens nobody wants. If you do it, there's a risk you open up and find late-term kittens in there and then you'll have to murder all of them. Also if the mother is nursing some kittens now, spaying means removing them from their kittens for a few days (will they die?) but if you keep waiting, there could be another litter coming sooner than you expect. Third world country like ours need serious legal reforms on pet ownership (ie, every licensed animal must be spayed / neutered, only licensed breeders are allowed to breed pets, must register the production numbers, etc).
 
Well spaying is never an easy decision. If you don't do it, there's an endless stream of kittens nobody wants. If you do it, there's a risk you open up and find late-term kittens in there and then you'll have to murder all of them. Also if the mother is nursing some kittens now, spaying means removing them from their kittens for a few days (will they die?) but if you keep waiting, there could be another litter coming sooner than you expect. Third world country like ours need serious legal reforms on pet ownership (ie, every licensed animal must be spayed / neutered, only licensed breeders are allowed to breed pets, must register the production numbers, etc).

It's not just third world countries. Here in the U.S., especially in rural or semi-rural areas stray cats can be a huge problem. Sometimes feral cats create large expanding colonies where they breed like crazy. Very recently, a big coordinated effort was made to spay, neuter and vaccinate a colony of 31 feral cats living on the outskirts of our largest nearby town. Several groups came together to make it happen. Some of the cats were adopted, some were "re-homed" as “working cats" and "barn cats" on local farms and some were returned to the colony. It seemed like a happy ending but now some people are very upset because wild outdoor cats tend to kill and eat huge numbers of songbirds, but even a large colony of feral cats that can no longer reproduce will eventually disappear and that is the most humane approach.

 
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well the easy id is tied into a key card, which if you have that give access to anything, so these guys installed keyloggers on public computers like libraries ASO

There they got peoples SSN and the general PW for easy id, then all they had to do was order a new keycard, and then intercept that in peoples mail box.
Then they could do anything they wanted from diverting peoples pension / welfare / pay check, to make loans in other peoples names and buy cars ASO

They now changed so you cant just order a new keycard, and also so you cant divert how many ever bank accounts into 1 account.
But IMO the system are still flawed, so think experts, but they dont want to fix it as it is getting replaced in a year or two, and for sure no one will ever be responsible for the mess we have right now.

Just ome of many - many things that make me have absolute NO trust in anything IT related when government are involved, pretty much anything they done in the past 20 - 30 years have been a mess, some times a working mess, other times a piece of software costing 500 Mill DKkr that just get thrown in a trash bin.

Seems like a disaster waiting to happen. You have to wonder why people designing the security for these things can't think like the criminals before they conclude that everything is secure.
 
some related info on where things are going

thehustle.co

Amazon and Apple’s meshy plan to connect every device​

Here’s a shocker: Amazon and Apple are plotting
The Washington Post recently showcased Apple and Amazon’s quiet construction of 2 large-scale wireless networks. The kicker? These networks work independent of WiFi and cell towers. Instead, they use consumer products like Echo speakers and iPhones.
The 2 networks, Apple’s Find My and Amazon Sidewalk, create a “mesh network” where nodes (devices) send small bits of information to each other.

Start with Apple’s Find My network...

Here’s how it works:
  1. Opted-in Apple devices pulse encrypted, low energy Bluetooth signals.
  2. Nearby devices pick up those signals and pass them down the line to a networked device.
The signals only go one-way and use 1/100th of the energy of a cell transmission. It’s the network AirTags rely on to locate lost tags (with disturbing accuracy).

Amazon Sidewalk > Find My

Sidewalk uses the same Bluetooth magic as Find My, but the devices aren’t iPhones in pockets; they’re stationary Ring cameras, lights, and Echo speakers.
A key difference between Sidewalk and Find My is that Sidewalk can handle two-way communication. But it’s not much -- Amazon caps the amount of data it will send via Sidewalk at 500MBs per month.

Why do it?

The 2 networks do not communicate with one another, but both are moves by 2 (mostly) popular companies to use their appeal to build massive mesh networks.
The value of massive mesh networks is up for debate, but it lays the foundation for capable internet-connected ecosystems -- think Amazon package trackers that talk to Ring cameras on their way to your doorstep.
Both Big Tech frenemies have been building these networks for some time. Apple’s Find My network was first released in 2011; Amazon says the Sidewalk network is compatible with Echo devices dating back to 2018...
… which gets you wondering, what are they packing into products today that we’ve yet to find out about?
 
I am more of a opt out guy, at least in regard to many digital things.
 
It's not just third world countries. Here in the U.S., especially in rural or semi-rural areas stray cats can be a huge problem. Sometimes feral cats create large expanding colonies where they breed like crazy. Very recently, a big coordinated effort was made to spay, neuter and vaccinate a colony of 31 feral cats living on the outskirts of our largest nearby town. Several groups came together to make it happen. Some of the cats were adopted, some were "re-homed" as “working cats" and "barn cats" on local farms and some were returned to the colony. It seemed like a happy ending but now some people are very upset because wild outdoor cats tend to kill and eat huge numbers of songbirds, but even a large colony of feral cats that can no longer reproduce will eventually disappear and that is the most humane approach.


That is indeed the most humane way to deal with the situation. Every species has its place in nature, but feral cats being fed by humans because they're cute and familiar, out-reproducing their prey and predators is not natural.
 
The inside of every white hat hackers hat,,,,,, is black.
 
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In a way the AirTag hack seems to turn the device into a sort of Samsung TecTile NFC tag on steroids (potentially). TecTiles are inexpensive consumer programmable RFID tags that came in the form of stickers that you attach to the back of your phone that can be consumer programmed via an App to trigger any number of tasks such as launching other apps, send text messages, share contact information, change phone settings and open web sites. TecTiles have been around since 2012 but they didn't sell well and were discontinued.

Apple licenses this technology from Samsung for use in the AirTag. This is how an AirTag communicates with Andriod phones when you hold it against the back of the phone and it launches the Apple web site that lets you receive a custom message from the person who lost their item.

So, it appears that the hacker basically re-enabled a capability that is already built into the device.



tectile.jpg

a.jpg
 
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I picked up a bunch and am using one in my vehicle, seeing how well it works as a car finder in a parking lot.

Unfortunately though, it doesn't seem to work super great. Since it's Bluetooth, you have to be within maybe 20-30 feet of the car to pick up the AirTag which isn't super useful for finding the car. I mean when you're that close, you can just use your remote to make the horn honk, haha.

It can help you remember where your car is on the map which is cool, but if you drive with something like Google Maps or Waze, those apps also automatically remember your car's location when you park too.

I'm considering keeping it in the car as an anti-theft tracker or something, but honestly I don't think it's super useful in a car or significantly better than the other tools we already have. It's great for keys and bags though. :)
 
I was browsing a Mac AirTag sub-forum called , "What will you track with AirTags?". I learned that at least 95% of users plan to track their car/house keys and backpacks. Then I saw a post that almost made me spill my coffee! :D

Chickens! ..................Chickens?? :ROFLMAO:

Actually, anyone who's raised free range chicken knows that they'll usually hang around pecking in the yard but sometimes they wander off somewhere or something happens. So, I guess being able to know where your chickens are at all times isn't all that different than putting an AirTag on your dog's collar. Then again, with 14 chickens- :chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken::chicken:, that's at least $350 dollars worth of AirTags! Must be some pretty fancy chickens! :smuggrin:

airtags.jpg
 
It's good that he's a responsible pet/animal owner and wants to know if they're causing nuisance for his neighbours.
 
My friends rottewiler got out of the kennel last year, someone called him about it from a town +5 KM away, fortunately the dog had its leash on that day.
 
Fortunately the collar/leash hasn't caught on to something and caused the dog to asphyxiate or otherwise physically destroyed by machine or vehicle.
 
I bought a 4 pack for keys and sunglass case. It also got me back into the 3D printing hobby. Bought myself a new one to replace the one I gave away a few years ago. Didn't want to pay $10 for a keychain so spend $250. Yeah that makes sense :ROFLMAO:
 

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