Strangers Sending Pictures Of Their Genitals To Strangers Via iPhone’ AirDrop

Exchanging photos of private parts is something that a lot of people do, but it is usually an informed arrangement. However, a recent trend of people sending pictures of their genitals to unsuspecting individuals has sparked concerns since it has something to do with the iPhone’s AirDrop feature. Fortunately, this particular problem can be remedied with a few changes to the setting.

By default, the AirDrop feature is set to Contacts Only or Receiving Off and this has been the case since its launch in 2013. However, when users set it to “Everyone,” the device becomes fair game. This is something that women riding the subways in New York learned when random, anonymous people started sending them pictures of their genitals, the New York Post recently reported.

It’s worth noting that the feature works via Bluetooth and has an effective range of 328 feet. This means that anyone on the subway could start sending people pictures of anything without giving themselves away. Of course, the problem can easily be addressed by simply resetting the AirDrop to the default settings, but a lot of people forget to do this once they make the previous changes.

As LifeHack points out, therefore, users should start checking their AirDrop app right now to see if they are leaving themselves open to an unexpected sexual harassment bomb. For those who don’t really know how to do this, it’s just a matter of swiping the bottom of the iPhone up to bring up the relevant icons.

Once it pops up, users can see the AirDrop option alongside AirPlay Mirroring and right above Night Shift. From there, it’s just a matter of making the right changes.

Anyone who experiences such sexual harassments can report the incident to the MTA. Even so, it’s worth it to simply avoid such incidents, to begin with.