iOS 15.2 Adds Option to Scan for Nearby AirTags and Find My-Enabled Items

With the iOS 15.2 beta that was released today, Apple has added enhancements to the Find My app. There's a new feature that's designed to let users scan for AirTags or Find My-enabled items that might be tracking them.

apple unknown items scan
When opening the ‌Find My‌ app after installing the beta and going to the "Items" tab, there's an option for "Items That Can Track Me." Tapping on this allows users to search for nearby items that might be used to track their location.

When activated, the Unknown Items feature scans for anything that's nearby, and will let users know either way if there's a device that belongs to someone else nearby. If an item is detected, Apple offers instructions on how to disable the device so that it can no longer be used for tracking purposes.

Apple also has a "Help Return Lost Items" option, which is the same as the prior "Identify Found Item." The Help Return Lost Items feature launches a scan that locates nearby devices and provides instructions on how to contact the device's owner, with instructions personalized based on the device in question.

AirTags and items with ‌Find My‌ integration are meant to allow users to track their lost devices, but there have been concerns that AirTags can be planted on people for stalking purposes. To prevent stalking with AirTags and other devices, Apple has implemented several safety measures.

AirTags are designed to start playing a sound between eight and 24 hours after being separated from their owner, and iPhone users are alerted if an AirTag is traveling with them. Apple is working on an Android app that will let Android users detect an unknown ‌AirTag‌ or ‌Find My‌ network-enabled item to prevent AirTags from being used to stalk Android users.

Related Forum: iOS 15

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
apple news banner

Apple News Loses CNN

Monday November 24, 2025 7:56 am PST by
American multinational news company CNN has abruptly pulled its content from Apple News, Semafor reports. CNN quietly removed its stories from Apple News over the weekend and there is no longer a feed from the network to subscribe to in the app. This effectively ends its distribution agreement with Apple while the two sides negotiate new terms. Discussions are apparently ongoing and CNN's...

Top Rated Comments

Mizouse Avatar
53 months ago
Won’t this mean that a robber could use that feature to deactivate a tag in stolen property?
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hazyb71 Avatar
53 months ago
Pretty lame. I get Apple’s intent but it seems contradictory. Why work with Van Moof to integrate Find My/AirTag functionality into bikes? Are people losing their bikes with no theft involved? This sends mixed messaging.

Yes, it’s for lost items. But stolen items are lost items too.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
siddavis Avatar
53 months ago
This looks nice, but somebody wake me when they add family sharing for AirTags.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xStep Avatar
53 months ago

AirTags help you find lost items, not stolen items.
A stolen item is a lost item.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JCCL Avatar
53 months ago
Ok so this has downgraded its ranking from partially useful to fully useless for me. What’s the point of for example placing a airtag in a bag, if the perpetrator can just pull out his phone, confirm there is one and disable it.

What’s the point of this Device?
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Think|Different Avatar
53 months ago
We NEED Family Sharing.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)