How a GLITCH in Apple’s Find My app 12 led strangers to believe a Texas man stole their devices
A Texas man claims he was the victim of an iPhone glitch that led to 12 angry strangers knocking on his door demanding he hand over their missing devices.
He believes the problem stems from a glitch in Find My, which finds Apple devices using a combination of cellular, Wi-Fi and GPS — but the feature is known to show the wrong location.
The app is pre-downloaded on iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macs and is also available to find missing AirTags and AirPods.
Countless reports are circling the web of people seeing the wrong location for their devices, even from as far as 10 miles away, but there are no known complaints of more than one item being associated with a location.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Apple for comment and has yet to receive a response.
Your device’s location can be incorrect for a number of reasons, including cell tower triangulation, scenery, and building materials that could put your iPhone 10 miles out of range.
DailyMail.com has compiled a list of fixes below so that you don’t fall victim to the same errors.
Scott Schuster claims he was the victim of an iPhone glitch that led to 12 angry strangers knocking on his door demanding he hand over their missing devices
Scott Schuster, a Richmond resident, said people immediately turned up at his doorstep day and night asking for their missing phones and Airpods.
“I have to wake up and open the door and tell people I don’t have their device,” he told ABC 13.
“And people don’t believe you.”
Schuster, a software engineer, said he has reported the problem to Apple multiple times.
He says at least 12 have shown up at his door and he fears for the safety of his children, aged seven and nine.
It’s unclear how at least a dozen people’s devices are connected to the same location, but users have reported their devices showing the wrong location. But not on this scale.
What is “Find My”
Apple introduced the feature, officially known as Find My iPhone, to paid MobileMe users in 2010 with iOS 3 software. It was made free with iOS 4.2.
He claims the bug stems from a malfunction in Apple’s Find My app that caused people to look for devices in the wrong place
Find My includes a Lost Mode that locks your device with a passcode and can display a custom message and phone number on the lock screen.
Lost Mode allows your device to track where it’s been and report it, so you can see its current location history right in the Find My iPhone app.
And the app will show a map where you can locate your lost device.
The Find My network and app is a crowdsourced network that uses millions of Bluetooth devices to track down a specific item.
Apple claims the process is end-to-end encrypted and anonymous.
How to use the Find My app to locate your device
First, open the app on an Apple device—probably a friend’s or family’s, since your device is missing.
Click the Devices tab at the bottom of your screen and look for your device in the list.
When you find the device you want to locate, tap on it and you can select more options to find it.
These include: Play Sounds, Get Directions, Notify When Found, Mark Lost, or Erase This Device.
The app is pre-downloaded on iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macs and is also available to find missing AirTags and AirPods
Countless reports are circling the web of people seeing the wrong location for their devices, even from as far as 10 miles away, but there are no known complaints of more than one item being associated with a location. The problem could be that you don’t have location services enabled
Why is Find My app showing the wrong location?
There are several reasons why the app might show you in the wrong place, but there are easy ways to fix the problem.
It could be that you have the wrong location service setting, need updates, have a poor internet connection, or obstacles are blocking cell tower connections.
If your device’s location service settings are incorrect, location-based apps will not collect the correct GPS information.
All you have to do is go to Settings and then Privacy where you can turn on location service.
Another reason why a location is incorrect is that your device needs to be updated
Also, make sure your device is set up with the correct date and time zone
Check if the Wi-Fi network is working properly or if you have enough data to establish a stable internet connection. If not, try changing data settings to stabilize your internet connection
A similar problem occurs when your device needs to be updated to the latest iOS system.
And a strong, stable internet connection is crucial to get the right GPS data.
When your internet connection is down or unavailable, you need to strengthen it.
Check if the Wi-Fi network is working properly or if you have enough data to establish a stable internet connection.
If not, try changing data settings to stabilize your internet connection.
How to fix wrong locations
Restarting the app is the first solution you might want to try. This can be done by closing and opening the app.
Next, check your location service settings and give the Find My app access to track your location while you’re using the app or always.
Also, make sure your device is set up with the correct date and time zone.
Resetting your location and privacy settings will restore your iPhone to its previous settings, eliminating incorrect location issues.
And if all else fails, restart your device.