Apple Inc. was warned about security vulnerabilities in its AirDrop feature before an alleged breach by China's Beijing Institute, which claims to have extracted iPhone users' details through AirDrop. Security experts have confirmed the possibility of extracting sender details from device logs, and researcher Alexander Heinrich noted that Apple was aware of these issues. Apple has been granted a patent for a new version of AirDrop using light, which could be more secure. The company had previously restricted AirDrop in China during anti-government protests.