The recently-added Journal app for iPhones has been the subject of some scary-sounding claims about potential privacy risks…your aunt probably posted on Facebook about it.
One being the fact that anyone can access your info if they are near you.
Fortunately, there's nothing to actually worry about.
The social media posts say that a particular setting, Discoverable by Others, allows anyone nearby to see your name and location.
That for sure sounds scary, but it’s nothing we need to be stressing over.
It can detect other devices around you to help with Journal suggestions, but you can't see the details of these other devices, and neither can Apple since the data stays on your phone.
Toggling Discoverable by Others on enables you to use journal prompts, but does not reveal your name or location, even to others nearby. So at the end of the day when you write in your journal…you can be reminded of what you did that day…and who you ran into.
If you still wanna turn yours off it’s in the Settings app's Privacy and Security section.
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