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iPhone journal app counts nearby devices, does not share personal info | Fact check

Nate Trela   Paste BN
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The claim: Apple Journal app by default shares your full name and location with anyone near you

A March 2 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) raises concern about an iPhone app.

"PSA for iPhone users! The latest update installed a new feature called 'Journaling,'" reads part of the post's caption, which goes on to claim the app by default is set to "discoverable by others."

“JUST SO YOU KNOW, this feature shares with anyone near you, your full name and exactly where you’re geo located,” the post reads.

The post was liked more than 1,000 times in four days.

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Our rating: False

The app does not share names and locations with anyone nearby, including your friends and contacts. It gathers data about the number of devices nearby and can prompt users to write journal entries if it determines they were at a popular event or around a number of contacts.

App does not share identifying information

Apple rolled out the Journal app in its iOS 17.2 update in late 2023, providing a platform for users to write journal entries, sometimes with prompts and suggestions from the device.

By default, the app settings enable the device to be "Discoverable by Others” and users “Prefer Suggestions with Others.” Some social media users have seized on those settings as proof personal information is being shared with anyone nearby, but Apple’s page on journaling suggestions and privacy says that is not the case.

“Journaling Suggestions may also use contextual information to determine which suggestions may be more meaningful or relevant to you,” the page reads. “Journaling Suggestions uses Bluetooth to detect the number of devices and contacts around you without storing which of these specific contacts were around.”

By counting devices, the app can make suggestions of moments to record in journals because a user was around contacts or significant numbers of iPhone users, Apple explains on the page. The counts are stored temporarily on devices and are not shared with Apple.

If users don’t want to use device counts to create journaling prompts or be included in counts provided to others, they can go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Journaling Suggestions, then tap to turn off "Prefer Suggestions with Others." Turning off that setting also turns off the setting that makes a device “Discoverable by Others.” Users can also choose to accept or block suggestions based on other ways the device is used, according to Apple Support.

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The claim echoes concerns in 2023 about the NameDrop feature, which allows iPhone users to share contact information and pictures. The function was turned on by default and sparked concerns that passersby could receive contact information from someone without their consent, but Paste BN reported that Apple included several safeguards to keep information from being passed unintentionally.          

Paste BN reached out to the social media user who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Snopes and PolitiFact also debunked the claim.

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