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Apple Inc has been sued by two women who say its AirTag devices made it easier for their former partners and other stalkers to track down victims.
In a proposed class action filed on Tuesday in San Francisco federal court, the women said Apple had been unable to protect people from unwanted trafficking through AirTag since launching what it called the ‘‘stalker proof’’ device in April 2021.
AirTags were intended to be slipped into or attached to keys, wallets, backpacks and other items so people could find them when they were lost.
But privacy experts and law enforcement have said some people use AirTags for malicious purposes.
The plaintiffs called AirTag ‘‘the weapon of choice of stalkers and abusers’’ and said it had been linked to murders this year of women from Ohio and Indiana.
The lawsuit sought unspecified damages for those in the US tracked by AirTag or ‘‘at risk’’ of being stalked due to Apple’s alleged negligence.