Apple’s New Find My Tool Helps Locate Lost Luggage

Apple’s Find My platform plays a significant role in its ecosystem, allowing users to track the location of their accessories. Recently, the tech giant unveiled a new feature named Share Item Location, enhancing the ability for users to securely share the whereabouts of any accessory or item attached to an AirTag with friends or airline service providers.

In pursuit of this goal, Apple has partnered with more than 15 major airlines across North America, Australia, Asia, and Europe to facilitate the tracking of lost belongings for passengers. These airline partners are set to launch their tracking support services in the coming months.

Current airline partners include well-known carriers such as Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Lufthansa, Qantas, Turkish Airlines, United, and Virgin Atlantic.

SITA (Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques), a global technology provider for aviation, will incorporate Apple’s Share Item Location into its WorldTracer baggage tracking system. This collaboration aims to broaden the scope of Apple’s tracking features to cover over 500 airlines and 2,800 airports, enhancing the travel experience for users globally.

The Share Item Location capability is integrated within the Find My system and is currently accessible as part of the iOS 18.2 beta update. At the time of writing, Digital Trends has confirmed its availability to users in several regions across North America and Asia.

This innovative tool works with all Apple devices compatible with the Find My system, as well as any item or luggage connected to AirTags. Apple assures that the sharing of item tracking links will be fully encrypted, providing essential security for users.

If you’ve misplaced an Apple device or a bag with an AirTag, you can initiate the retrieval process by launching the Find My app on any Apple device and creating a Share Item Location link.

After generating the link, the recipient will be able to see a map indicating the location of the item in question. According to Apple, “the website will automatically refresh when new location data becomes available and will display the most recent update’s timestamp.”

To maintain security, anyone attempting to access the tracking dashboard will need to verify their identity. This measure safeguards against unauthorized access to the item’s live location, thus protecting user privacy.

Verification will occur either through an Apple Account (for those in the Family Sharing group or part of the Apple ecosystem) or via a registered email provided by the airline service partner.

The aforementioned email address will be recognized as an Apple Partner, accessible only to airlines that have partnered with Apple to assist users in Find My tracking.