Well… That takes care of that.

For the past few months in Japan, the media has been covering a growing social problem of “AirDrop Chikan.” They are a revolutionary breed of chikan who utilize Apple’s AirDrop function to remotely send dirty pictures to any other Apple user within a several-meter radius in busy locations such as trains.

With AirDrop, a user is notified of the sending request by a thumbnail image of one of the pictures. This means that, even if unsolicited, users are exposed to whatever twisted image someone chooses to send.

▼ Ugh, oh god…

Based on testimonies of arrested AirDrop Chikan, the main purpose is to get a kick out of the person’s reaction upon suddenly seeing a dirty photograph.

Of course, it’s relatively easy to turn off a phone’s ability to accept these requests from unknown devices, but many people don’t seem to fully understand it. This ensures that an AirDrop Chikan’s chances of finding victims in crowded places remains high.

It had been a growing problem in Japan with no end in sight–that is, until Apple suddenly ended it. In their recent iOS13 update, Apple had stopped the thumbnail image from appearing on AirDrop send requests, greatly damaging an AirDrop Chikan’s ability to harass people.

▼ AirDrop send request on iOS 12

▼ AirDrop send request on iOS 13

Granted, the request will still arrive for people who have their settings on “Everyone” but they will have to take the plunge and tap “Accept” before getting exposed to whatever is on the other end.

However, that would be like opening emails from the Prince of Nigeria and discount Viagra dealers, in that you are voluntarily entering this shady world and should accept some of the blame for whatever happens as a result.

▼ Tax refund??? This sounds important. I better check it out.

Readers of the news applauded this simple but effective solution.

“Oh, that’s a nice change.”
“Great way to stop those chikan.”
“I’m going to update right now!”
“I still can’t recommend updating to iOS13 as it’s still unstable, but this is a good addition.”
“Everyone should just turn off the ‘everyone’ setting instead.”
“Makes me wonder why it wasn’t like this from the start.”

The old thumbnail feature was a nice touch as it let me easily know what was coming from who at a glance and also confirm whether it was a photo that I needed or already had. That being said, I probably won’t miss it too much either. It’s also understandable and even downright wholesome that no one on the development team apparently imagined that it could be used in such a nefarious way.

▼ Apple developer: “This new AirDrop function will completely revolutionize the way Ziggy fans meet and share ideas.”

The other good news in all this is that AirDrop can still be used in proper ways such as soliciting cat pictures from strangers or informing fellow motorists that you’re in a hurry to poop. It’s just as Steve Jobs had envisioned so many years ago.

Source: Twitter/IPA_anshin, My Game News Flash
Photos ©SoraNews24
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