The new iOS 17 operating system for Apple’s iPhone includes a feature called “NameDrop” that is enabled by default on phones of users who update their software, prompting authorities to share instructions on how to disable it. Here’s what you need to know.
What exactly is NameDrop?
NameDrop is a feature that allows iPhone users to share their contact information with other devices that they come into contact with, such as iPhones and watches. It also allows users to receive contacts from others.
How does the NameDrop feature function?
All that is required is for one to place their phone’s screen close to the top of another person’s iPhone, causing both devices to vibrate. Once they are linked, a NameDrop prompt will appear on both phone screens, allowing users to choose if they want to share and receive contact cards.
Apple’s website states that iPhone users have the option to choose which contact details, including phone numbers and email addresses, they want to share.
Why are authorities issuing NameDrop warnings to iPhone users?
It’s useful for quickly sharing information without sending a text message or manually sharing a contact card. Authorities, however, are concerned that it could provide bad actors with easy access to the personal information of unsuspecting victims.
The feature has prompted police departments across the United States to issue parental alerts. For example, the Jefferson Hills Police Department advised parents whose children own iPhones to disable the feature.
“This feature could allow the sharing of your contact info just by bringing your phones close together,” the department wrote in a Facebook post. “Don’t forget to change these settings after the update on your children’s phones, also, to help keep them safe as well.”
What dangers does NameDrop present?
The feature does make it easier to share personal information, including with bad actors, according to cybersecurity experts.
“This can include your name, phone number, email address, home address, work address, birthday, a picture of your face, and even more. The more information cyber criminals gain access to, the more harm they can cause you and your finances,” said Mike Scheumack, chief innovation officer of identity theft protection company IdentityIQ.
While anyone who chooses to use the feature should exercise caution, some warnings to avoid NameDrop entirely are exaggerated.
“Features like Apple’s NameDrop that reveal personal information should be treated cautiously but not necessarily avoided,” Kurt Sanger, a cybersecurity expert at Batten Safe and the former deputy general counsel at the federal U.S Cyber Command told CBS MoneyWatch. “If NameDrop works as advertised, a user will have to make deliberate, intentional selections to share information from device to device.”
How to disable NameDrop on an iPhone
Here’s how to disable the NameDrop function-
- To begin, go to your iPhone’s settings.
- Then select “General,” then “AirDrop.”
- Toggle the “Bringing Devices Together” sharing option button to the off position to disable NameDrop.