Law Enforcement Issues Warning to Parents as Apple’s iOS 17 Update Raises Concerns Over Child Safety

(KNSI) – Law enforcement is warning the public about a cell phone update that’s causing concern for parents.

Apple recently launched its iOS 17 operating system, and the revision includes a feature from the company NameDrop that allows phones to exchange contact information by getting just a few inches apart. Apple says both sides must agree to the transfer. The download’s default setting turns the feature on automatically for people in the phone’s contact list.

Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck advises parents to change that. “I would go in and I would turn off this feature, just to be on the safe side. We all know that sometimes electronics do strange things, and I would be most comfortable as a parent, making sure I had as many roadblocks in the way of some stranger obtaining the phone number and name of my child.”

Heck says something like this has the potential to be abused. “There are a lot of strange people out there that might take advantage of this technology. And it’s always good to be prepared and to have safeguards around your kids.”

The companies say the purpose is to allow people to exchange information without needing to hand over the phone.

To disable the feature, go to the iPhone’s settings, then to general, AirDrop, bringing devices together, and change it to off.

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