AirDrop and Quick Share flaws put over 5 billion devices at risk

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Credit: Adamya Sharma / Android Authority

TL;DR

New security flaws in AirDrop and Quick Share affect more than five billion Apple and Android devices.

A hacker within 30 meters can exploit the bugs, without requiring a phishing link, Wi-Fi access, or physical contact.

Researchers say both file-sharing systems prioritize seamless transfers, exposing background services before verifying who’s sending the request.

Sharing a photo or document with a nearby phone has become second nature, but new security research suggests that the convenience behind AirDrop and Quick Share has a much larger attack surface than many realize.

A new wave of vulnerabilities in Apple’s AirDrop and Android’s Quick Share puts well over five billion active devices at risk. A bad actor doesn’t need to touch your phone, send you a phishing link, or share your Wi-Fi network — they just need to be within 30 meters of you with a laptop, researchers at the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security have found (via Help Net Security ). The team took apart both of the ecosystems to see how they deal with wireless file transfers. These features run as highly privileged services in the background that wake up the second another device comes near, because they prioritize a seamless experience.