A Best Buy employee recently AirDropped a customer’s intimate photos to his own phone while she stood right there in the store.
Here’s everything you should do before handing your phone to anyone.
Recently, in April 2026, a 36-year-old woman walked into a Best Buy Store in Huntington Station, New York, with a simple phone problem. She got help from a store employee named Kaelem Von Camper, and she left the store thinking that the issue was solved.
Then, her phone pinged and AirDrop notification. Intimate photos from her own gallery were sent to an unknown number while she was standing right there.
Kaelem Von Camper was later charged with unlawful dissemination of an intimate image and unauthorized use of a computer. Best Buy called the allegations ‘deeply disturbing’ and confirmed the employee was no longer with the company.
But here is the thing, this is not the only case. An Apple Genius Bar employee in Bakersfield texted himself an intimate photo from a customer’s phone after she brought it in for repair. T-Mobile has faced at least eight similar lawsuits, with employees accused of stealing intimate images from customers’ phones during trade-ins and repairs.
This keeps happening. And every single time, the phone was handed over unlocked, with everything on it fully accessible.
How To Keep Your Private Data Safe
If you want to avoid these kinds of instances, always remember that whenever you walk into any repair shop, be it an Apple store or any Android store, you should always secure your phone.
Step 1: Back Up Everything First
Before you do anything else, back up your phone completely. Not because the technician will wipe it, but because you need a full copy of your data before you make any changes to the device.
For iPhone: Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup > Back Up Now.
For Android: Go to Settings > Google > Backup > Back Up Now. On Samsung specifically, go to Settings > Accounts and Backup > Back Up Data.
Check that the backup completed by looking at the timestamp at the bottom of the screen.
Step 2: Use Repair Mode If Your Phone Has It
Most people do not know this feature exists. Some Android phones now have a built-in Repair Mode that locks down your personal data while letting a technician test the hardware.
Samsung’s Maintenance Mode lets you lock down your photos, messages, and accounts while still allowing repair staff to test your phone’s hardware.
You can turn it on in Settings under Battery and Device Care > Maintenance Mode.
Google’s Repair Mode works similarly; it creates a temporary user profile that the technician works within, keeping your data completely separate.
iPhone users: iPhones do not currently have a built-in repair mode. The best alternative is to back up your data and do a factory reset before handing it in.
Step 3: Move Private Photos To A Hidden Folder
If a full reset feels like too much for a minor repair, you can also move your sensitive photos into a hidden folder that requires biometrics to open.
On iPhone: Open the photo > tap the three-dot menu > select Hide. The photo disappears from your main gallery and moves to a Hidden folder that can only be opened with Face ID or your PIN.
On Samsung: Move photos to the Secure Folder. Find it in Settings > Biometrics and Security > Secure Folder.
This takes five minutes and can save you from a situation exactly like the one in Huntington Station.
Step 4: Sign Out Of Sensitive Apps
Before handing your phone over, sign out of apps that carry your most sensitive information, like banking apps, email, payment apps like Google Pay or Apple Pay, and social media.
If you use saved passwords in your browser, clear them or sign out of the browser entirely. Remove any saved credit or debit cards from your phone’s wallet.
Step 5: Erase The Phone
The safest way to protect your data is to back up your files and factory reset your device. This ensures no sensitive data is on it when you hand it over to the repair centre.
This sounds extreme, but it is actually the smartest move, especially for hardware repairs like screen replacements or battery swaps.
On iPhone: Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings. Enter your Apple ID password and confirm.
On Android: Settings > System > Reset > Factory Data Reset.
Once you get the phone back, restore from your backup, and everything comes back exactly as it was.
Keep An Eye on Your Phone
Whenever you hand over your phone at a repair counter, pay attention to whether it stays in front of you or disappears into a back room.
At Apple’s store, much of the work on a faulty iPhone is done right in front of the customer, where possible. That is the standard you should expect from anyone handling your device.
If the phone needs to go out of sight for a legitimate reason, ask how long it will take and whether you can wait. A good repair shop will not have a problem with that question.
Also Read: Apple Just Copied a 10-Year-Old Android Feature – Here’s What It Does
