You can identify, find and remove trackers that have been placed near you or in your belongings without your knowledge or consent with the help of Unknown tracker alerts.
What are trackers?
A tracker, also called a tag, is a small Bluetooth device that you can attach to items like keys or a backpack to help you find them when they get lost. Some headphones and earbuds also have tracking capabilities so that they can be found if they're lost.
In some cases, these devices may be misused to track people without their consent.
What is an Unknown tracker alert?
An Unknown tracker alert is sent when someone else’s tracker device is separated from them and your Android phone detects that the tracker is travelling with you and out of Bluetooth range of the owner. The notification alerts you to the tracker and tells you how to find it and what to do next.
Tips:
- You may get these notifications if you borrow an item or if you are travelling with someone who has a tracker with them.
- You can’t stop a tracker’s ability to share its location by turning on aeroplane mode or turning off Bluetooth or Location Services on your phone. Learn how to turn off a tracker.
What to do if you get an Unknown tracker alert
Important: If you turn off Bluetooth or Location Services, or turn on aeroplane mode, your phone won’t prevent the owner of the tracker or device from finding the location of the tracker. To disable the tracker, follow the instructions provided by the manufacturer.
- On your device, tap the tracker notification to open a map.
- Find where the tracker has been detected travelling with you.
- Tap Play sound, which will cause the tracker to make a sound.
- You won’t notify the owner if you play the sound.
- To locate the tracker, follow the sound.
- If you find the tracker, tap Next steps.
- After you find the tracker, you may:
- Go to a safe public location and contact the police or a trusted contact if you feel that your safety is at risk.
- Get and save the tracker’s info.
- Disable the tracker. Learn how to turn off a tracker.
If you get a notification on your Android phone or tablet, a tracker that’s not yours could be moving with you.
It’s possible that the tracker is attached to or in something that you’re borrowing, such as keys or a backpack.
To learn more about the tracker, such as the type of device and name of the manufacturer, tap the notification.
When you tap the notification, it’ll show you a map of where the tracker was detected moving with you.
- You won't be able to tell where the owner of the tracker checked its location.
If you get an alert, to help you locate the tracker, you can have it play a sound by tapping Play sound.
If you still can't find the device, make the tracker play a sound again by tapping Play sound.
Tip: You won't notify the owner of the tracker if you've played the sound.
If you’re unable to play a sound or can’t hear the sound, try to move around and tap Play sound. It’s possible that the tracker is no longer in range or the device ID has changed.
If you can't play a sound but believe that the tracker is near you, look through your belongings. Search yourself and your surroundings for anywhere the device may be hidden. This could be in places where you don’t commonly look, like in a pocket, your bag or your car.
If you can't find the device and feel that your safety is at risk, go to a safe public location and contact the police or a trusted contact.
You can take screenshots of the Unknown tracker alert and the map of the tracker locations for later reference.
To get the list of actions that you can take, tap Next steps.
There may be different instructions for different trackers, including saving information to help report and disable the device.
Once you find the tracker, you may want to save its information.
- You may also want to take a screenshot of the Unknown tracker alert and map of the tracker locations.
- For AirTags, to learn more information about the tracker, bring the tracker near to the back side of your phone.
- You may have to wait a moment for the tracker information to come up on your screen.
- Some devices may share their serial number or additional information about the owner of the device. Other devices also have the serial number printed physically on the Bluetooth tracker.
- You may want to take a screenshot of the serial number or owner information.
- For Find My Device-network-compatible trackers, to learn more about the tracker, follow the on-screen instructions.
- Once all the identification instructions are completed, you'll be able to find the device identifier and hidden email address of the owner.
- You may want to take a screenshot of the device identifier or owner information.
- If you’re unable to find the instructions to reveal the owner information, follow the identification instructions on the manufacturer's website.
Important:
- Some trackers, if disabled, may be factory reset and no longer linked to their original owner. The police may not be able to get additional information about these trackers, like who owns the tracker.
- Physically disabling the device will stop the owner from receiving future location updates from the tracker, but they may still be able to check the last location from when the tracker was still enabled.
- Depending on your situation, you can disable the tracker to stop any tracking or keep it enabled if you are concerned that disabling it could be unsafe.
- To disable the tracker, find the product manufacturer below and follow the step-by-step instructions:
| Product | Where to get help |
| Apple AirTag | Disable an AirTag |
| Chipolo CARD | Disable a Chipolo CARD |
| Chipolo ONE | Disable a Chipolo ONE |
| Motorola moto tag | Disable a Motorola moto tag |
| Pebblebee Card | Disable a Pebblebee Card |
| Pebblebee Clip | Disable a Pebblebee Clip |
| Pebblebee Tag | Disable a Pebblebee Tag |
- You may be able to work with local law enforcement to learn more about the tracker that you've found. To support an investigation, the police may ask you for the tracker, the device's identifier or other information.
If you can’t find the device, it may still be near you or on your belongings.
- If it’s safe to do so, retrace your steps and check belongings that you had on the route shown on the alert, like your car or backpack.
- Run a manual scan to find trackers nearby.
- If the tracker is still detected with you the next day, you may receive another alert.
If you want to see alerts that you’ve previously received:
- On your device, tap Settings.
- Tap Safety and emergency
Unknown tracker alerts.
- In the middle of the screen, tap the tracker alerts button.
Unknown tracker alerts.Tip: Alerts are deleted after 48 hours.
Check for trackers near you
Run a manual scanYou can check for trackers that are separated from their owners and currently near you at any time.
- On your device, tap Settings.
- Tap Safety and emergency
- Your device takes about 10 seconds to complete a manual scan.
You can detect trackers that are currently near you and separated from their owner’s device with a manual scan. It’s possible that the trackers found in a manual scan are simply misplaced or temporarily separated from their owner’s device.
If you’ve turned on Unknown tracker alerts, you’ll get a notification automatically if the system determines that an unknown tracker is moving with you.
Trackers that appear in a manual scan are currently near you, but may not have been travelling with you.
If you have alerts turned on, you’ll be notified automatically if the system determines that an unknown tracker is moving with you.How your phone received the update
To keep your Android phone safe, it regularly gets updates in the background. During an update, Play Services added the Unknown tracker alert system, and you will automatically get notifications about an unknown tracker.
If you would like to opt out, you can do so at any time.
Turn off Unknown tracker alertsImportant: If you turn off Unknown tracker alerts, previous alerts will be cleared and any information about other unknown trackers will be deleted. This data can’t be recovered.
If your Android device is Android 12 (S) and up:
- On your device, tap Settings.
- Tap Safety and emergency
- Turn Allow alerts off.
If your Android device is Android 11 (R) and lower:
- On your device, tap Settings.
- Tap Google
- Turn off alerts.
Your data and privacy
What data we useTo determine how an unknown tracker has travelled with you, Unknown tracker alerts use your location information and timestamps of when your device detected the tracker, and a device ID for the tracker. When you receive an Unknown tracker alert, you’ll also find the places that the tracker was detected with you on a map.
This information is processed and temporarily stored in an encrypted format, never leaving your device, to determine if there’s a tracker following you and displaying it to you on a map. It’s not shared with Google or other users.
To get automated alerts for unknown trackers travelling with you, you must have your location turned on.
If you turn off your location, to find trackers that are near you at the moment, you can still use the manual scanning feature.
- On Android 11 and up: Manual scanning doesn’t require the phone's location setting to be on. Check and update your Android version.
- On Android 10 and lower: Manual scanning uses your phone’s location setting and Bluetooth. There are several ways that you can control which apps and services can access your location.
Troubleshoot problems with unknown trackers
Why can’t I ring a tracker after I get an alert?You may not be able to ring the tracker if:
- The tracker owner is nearby
- The tracker was very recently separated from its owner
- The tracker is out of your Android phone’s Bluetooth range or no longer with you
- The tracker device ID has changed
Each Bluetooth tracker has a random ID associated with it that changes periodically. If the tracker isn’t near its owner, it may change less frequently, such as once per day.
When the tracker changes its random ID, it's no longer identified as the same tracker, and your Android device will display it as a new tracker in future scans or alerts.
Unknown tracker alerts consider multiple factors when sending an alert. To improve alert accuracy, you need to physically move with the tracker over time before receiving an alert.
Additional support resources
If you’re concerned about your safety, these resources may help:
- United States: Safety Net Project
- United Kingdom: Refuge UK
- Australia: WESNET Safety Net Australia