A Birmingham woman says she feared for her life and her child's life after discovering a hidden Apple AirTag in her vehicle in July, one of two Metro Detroit women now suing Apple over allegations that the company's tracking devices let their former partners stalk them for months. The women, identified in court filings only as Jane MH Doe-1 and Jane WP Doe-2, filed the lawsuit on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
According to MLive, the Birmingham woman's 12-year-old son found an AirTag concealed in her vehicle on July 25. Before that discovery, her former romantic partner had repeatedly shown up at places she visited without being told where she was going, including at a park on July 2 despite her vehicle being hidden behind a truck, and he reportedly knew she was attending a Fourth of July fireworks event she had never told him about. Two days after the AirTag turned up, on July 23, he located her again and appeared at her new residence, the outlet reports.
The Birmingham woman used an iPhone throughout the ordeal but says she never received a notification warning that an unknown AirTag was traveling with her, per the same account. She and her son ultimately threw the device into Lake Huron on July 25. The suit also states she had earlier moved her camper away from a campground because her former partner kept appearing there.
A Second Woman's Years-Long Ordeal in Madison Heights
The second plaintiff, who lives in Madison Heights, says she left a four-year abusive relationship before discovering in March 2023 that an AirTag had been concealed beneath the back seat of her car. She used an Android phone and, like the Birmingham woman, reported never receiving an AirTag warning, the lawsuit states as reported by MLive.
The Madison Heights woman moved into a new apartment that same month without telling her former partner the address, but he appeared at her new building the same day she moved in and later entered the building itself, according to the filing. She says he wrote messages on her door and repeatedly keyed her vehicle. It wasn't until her niece, visiting with an iPhone, received an AirTag alert that the device was found. She reported the alleged stalking to Madison Heights police in April 2023, and the lawsuit says the harassment continued even after the AirTag was discovered.
What the Lawsuit Alleges Against Apple
The two women, who are using pseudonyms to protect their identities, accuse Apple of failing to adequately protect people from stalking with AirTags — devices Apple introduced in 2021 to help users locate lost belongings. Their complaint alleges negligence, invasion of privacy, defective product design, and violations of the Michigan Consumer Protection Act, claiming Apple knew AirTags could be misused for stalking but released them without adequate safeguards. They are seeking damages and other relief and have requested a jury trial, MLive reports.
The suit contends Apple could have implemented louder and harder-to-disable AirTag speakers, faster alert times, identity verification for device purchasers, and equivalent detection capabilities across both iPhone and Android devices, arguing that current safeguards remain inadequate for users of either platform. It's worth noting that the allegations remain unproven in court.
How Apple and Lawmakers Have Responded So Far
Apple and Google jointly rolled out an industry specification called Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers in May 2024, built into iOS 17.5 and Android 6.0 and later, which is designed to alert users on either operating system when an unfamiliar Bluetooth tracker appears to be moving with them over time, according to Apple. Even so, the new Michigan lawsuit argues those cross-platform fixes have not gone far enough to protect domestic violence survivors in practice.
This is not the first time Apple has faced this kind of legal challenge. A class-action lawsuit filed in December 2022 in the Northern District of California accused Apple of similar failures after two women said their ex-partners secretly placed AirTags in a car wheel well and a child's backpack, as detailed by Jezebel. In March 2024, a federal judge ruled that three plaintiffs in that case had presented enough evidence under California law for negligence and strict product liability claims to move forward, according to Claims Journal.
Michigan's Criminal Tracking Laws and the Bigger Picture
Separate from any civil claims against Apple, Michigan law already criminalizes the underlying conduct described by both women. Under Michigan Compiled Laws § 750.539l, installing a tracking device on someone's vehicle without their knowledge or consent is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine, according to the Michigan Legislature. Stalking can be elevated to a felony charge of aggravated stalking, carrying up to five years in prison, if the conduct violates a protective order, breaches probation or parole, or includes a credible threat.
Domestic violence experts have long warned that tech-enabled monitoring is widespread among abusive relationships. A survey by the National Network to End Domestic Violence's Safety Net Project found that 97% of domestic violence victim response programs reported helping survivors who experienced harassment, monitoring, or threats carried out through misuse of technology, per the City of Houston. Critics have also pointed out that Apple's original anti-stalking features, when the AirTag launched in 2021 at $29 apiece, were designed primarily around stranger-danger scenarios rather than intimate partner situations where a victim and abuser may share a household, according to Fast Company.
Other states have moved to close similar legal gaps. Florida updated its stalking statutes in April 2024 specifically to criminalize the unauthorized placement of Bluetooth trackers and location-monitoring apps, per Fresh Take Florida. The Metro Detroit case adds to a growing list of similar disputes nationwide, including a South Carolina man who pleaded guilty to stalking charges in 2023 after hiding AirTags in a woman's vehicle. The Eastern District of Michigan lawsuit is still in its early stages, and it remains to be seen how the court will weigh Apple's product design against the criminal misuse alleged by both women.
