AirDrop privacy on iPhone: who can send you files
Open Control Center, touch and hold the connectivity controls, tap AirDrop and choose Contacts Only or Receiving Off. Apple names a third choice, Everyone for 10 Minutes, which changes itself back after ten minutes. Leave AirDrop on Contacts Only day to day, and open it up only when you expect a file from someone you know.
Set who can send to you
- Open Control Center.
- Touch and hold the group of connectivity controls.
- Tap AirDrop.
- Choose Receiving Off, Contacts Only or Everyone for 10 Minutes.
Receiving Off means nobody can send you files. Contacts Only limits it to people in your contacts. Everyone for 10 Minutes is for the moment when someone you do not have saved needs to send you something.
What the 10-minute setting does by itself
Apple says that in iOS 16.2 and later, Everyone for 10 Minutes changes after 10 minutes. If you are signed in to an Apple Account it goes back to Contacts Only. If you are not, it goes back to Receiving Off. You do not need to remember to switch it back.
The AirDrop code on iOS 26.2 and later
When both devices use iOS 26.2 or later and the sender is not in your contacts, Apple says they are prompted to use an AirDrop code: the recipient taps Get AirDrop Code and gives it to the sender. Apple adds that the sender is added to the Other Known List in your contacts for 30 days, and you can mark the person as unknown in Contacts before then if you want. If you or the sender have an older iOS, expect the older behaviour.
What AirDrop does not do for you
- Apple's page describes sending and receiving, not protecting a file afterwards. Treat a received file as an ordinary file on your phone.
- Apple's page does not say what a nearby stranger can see about your device name, so we do not make claims about that. If it matters, set Receiving Off when you are in a crowd.
Sending sensitive files
If you need to send someone a private file, a plain AirDrop leaves a normal copy on their phone. StrongRoom's Share Package is an encrypted file you choose items for. You can send the file by AirDrop or any other route, and the six words or QR code that open it travel separately. You can set an open limit and an expiry. -> /features/share-package/ Its limits are written down, including what it cannot stop the recipient doing. What StrongRoom does not protect against
More settings of this kind are on the pillar page.
Frequently asked questions
How do I stop strangers sending me AirDrop files?
Set AirDrop to Contacts Only or Receiving Off in Control Center. Use Everyone for 10 Minutes only when you expect something.
Does Everyone for 10 Minutes stay on?
No. Apple says it changes after 10 minutes, to Contacts Only if you are signed in to an Apple Account, otherwise to Receiving Off.
Can I send a StrongRoom Share Package by AirDrop?
Yes, it is an ordinary file. Send the six words or QR code that open it by a different route.
Sources
- How to use AirDrop on your iPhone or iPad (Apple Support), checked on 2026-10-30.