GREENSBORO, N.C. — Exchanging business cards or making sure you have each other's phone numbers is a common thing to do for work or group events. Now, Apple users can share that information by simply touching each other’s phones head-to-head or putting one on top of the other.
It's a cool feature called Name Drop, but it's also making people nervous about privacy. 2 Wants To Know explains how this feature works--and how to protect yourself.
Apple's Name Drop feature allows you to share your contact info or the info of someone you have in your contact phone list. The new iOS 17 update turns the feature on automatically.
You know you have it by going to Settings> General> Air Drop> Bringing Devices Together
You can turn it off if you like, but remember your phone has to almost be physically touching someone else's for this to work.
"If I have an iPhone and you have an iPhone we can't just be walking by one another for our phones to share information," said Sgt. Victoria Dallas, Sheriff’s Office, Genesee County, Michigan.
You don't have to worry that everyone with an iPhone is getting your contact information with this Name Drop feature, but I do want to make sure you're aware of two things.
#1 WHO CAN AIR DROP YOU PHOTOS?
Remember the AirDrop screen to turn off the Name Drop feature? While a lot of people were focused on the Bringing Devices Together button, my biggest concern for you is who you are allowing to AirDrop photos to you.
I have it set to “my contacts”, this way only people I know can send me pictures. Think of how creepy it would be to get a picture from some stranger! Check your settings.
#2 CHECK YOUR CONTACT CARD
This is your information on your contacts list about you.
When I looked at mine, it had my cell phone number, my home address, and even my mom's contact info.
It's okay to have that info in there, but if you're going to use the Name Drop feature, you may want to change some of that info, especially if you're using it for business only.