TECH
Apple customers have been slowly figuring out the newest features from the iOS17 update — including one that has raised safety concerns.
Similar to AirDrop, the new-to-iPhone feature NameDrop allows users to quickly share their contact information with nearby iPhones or Apple Watches, rather than having to hand over their phone to a new person to exchange info.
To share from your iPhone, all you have to do is hold the display of your phone “a few centimeters” from the top of the other person’s device. A “glow” will emerge from both phones to signify a connection being made.
Continue to hold the two devices near each other until NameDrop appears on both screens and you can choose to share your contact card and receive the other person’s, or to only receive the other person’s.
Since the only options are to receive only or to share, if both users select only to receive the other’s information, neither user gets anything. If you wish to cancel the connection, either move the devices away from each other or lock your iPhone before the transfer completes.
While the feature seems simple and convenient, many are taking to social media to warn against utilizing it claiming you could be oversharing your data without even realizing it.
According to Forbes, multiple law enforcement agencies across America have even issued security warnings over the feature, warning people — particularly parents — that the feature could “share your contact information by being next to another iPhone” and implying that children could be in danger with this feature turned on.