Does a new iPhone feature automatically share your contact information with other phones?

A new iPhone feature does not automatically share contact information from the user's phone with another phone simply by bringing the devices close together.

News organizations debunked the claim after police departments in Wisconsin and around the country issued warnings in late November 2023 about the new feature, known as NameDrop.

In its instructions for using NameDrop with an iPhone, or an Apple Watch, Apple says that a user must choose to share their contact information, or another contact’s information, with another device a few centimeters away.

Both users must choose to share the contact information, such as phone numbers and email addresses, Apple said in announcing NameDrop as part of a software update.

The tech publication Wired reported that “consent is required throughout the process. Some random person on the street can’t just bump into you for a few seconds, and then walk away with your phone number.”