AirDrop and Quick Share privacy
How AirDrop and Quick Share work, who can send you files, and simple settings that keep nearby sharing private on iPhone and Android.
The short answer: set AirDrop or Quick Share to contacts only, give your phone a name that is not your full name, and only open it to everyone for the few minutes you need it.
Both features find nearby phones over Bluetooth and move the file over a direct Wi-Fi link. The privacy questions are about discovery: who can see your phone in their list, what name they see, and who can push a file onto your screen.
On iPhone
Open Settings, then General, then AirDrop. Choose Contacts Only for everyday use, or Receiving Off if you rarely use it. Everyone for 10 Minutes switches back to Contacts Only on its own, which makes it a safe way to receive from someone new. The same screen has the option for bringing phones together to share, if you want that off.
Your device name is under Settings, General, About, Name. "Sam's iPhone" tells a whole train carriage who you are.
On Android
Quick Share is the nearby sharing feature on most Android phones, including Pixel and Samsung. Press and hold its tile in the quick settings panel, or search Settings for "Quick Share". Set visibility to Contacts or Your devices, and use Everyone only briefly. Check the device name on the same screen. Menu names vary by manufacturer and version.
Habits that help
- Turn receiving down before trains, concerts and airports.
- Decline any file you were not expecting. Declining does not save it.
- Check the recipient name before you tap. Similar names are easy to mix up.
- Files sent this way usually keep their metadata, including location. Strip it first if that matters.
- There is no unsend. Once the photo arrives, it belongs to the other phone.
If someone sends you unwanted explicit images, you do not have to open them. Decline, note the time and place, and report it to staff or police if it keeps happening.