Is Snapdrop safe?
Last checked
"Snapdrop" now means two different things, and the safety answer is different for each. The site most people find, snapdrop.net, uploads your file to storage. The original open source Snapdrop sends it directly between browsers on the same network.
snapdrop.net: an upload and a link
From snapdrop.net (checked 2026-10-30):
- "Snapdrop is part of LimeWire now and transfers run through LimeWire storage instead of a direct browser-to-browser connection."
- "Files are stored by LimeWire and the link opens on limewire.com."
- Without an account, "a share link stays alive for 3 days", then "the link stops working and the file is removed".
- On who can open it: "Anyone holding it. The link is unguessable but it is not a password, so send it only to people who should have the file."
So the questions to ask are the usual ones for any upload service: are you comfortable with a copy of the file on LimeWire's storage for 3 days, and will the link stay with the people you send it to? For holiday photos, probably. For a scanned passport or a contract, think twice.
The original Snapdrop (snapdrop.me)
snapdrop.me (checked 2026-10-30) is the classic page: "Open Snapdrop on other devices to send files", and "You can be discovered by everyone on this network". On a shared network, anyone else with the page open can see your device and offer you a file; you still choose whether to save it. The page may also ask for microphone access, saying it "helps Chrome connect to nearby devices" and that "No audio is recorded or sent".
PairDrop
From the PairDrop FAQ (checked 2026-10-30): "WebRTC encrypts the files in transit", and "if the devices are on the same network, none of your files are ever sent to any server". For paired devices behind NAT, "the PairDrop TURN Server is used to route your files and messages". The FAQ is candid that "you have to trust the PairDrop server", and links issue #180 for a planned zero-trust design.
tosstome
tosstome is built so there is as little as possible to trust:
- Files are never written to storage. If the receiver is offline, nothing is sent.
- Devices find each other by network (the public IP address is hashed first) or by a 6-digit code. The receiver sees who is sending and what, and has to press Accept.
- Direct transfers are encrypted end to end by the browser (DTLS).
- When a direct connection is blocked, the relay on Cloudflare forwards bytes as they arrive and keeps nothing. It is encrypted with TLS but not end to end yet; that is on the roadmap.
- The server, transfer code and command line tool are open source.
Details are on the privacy page and in how it works.
A short checklist for any file sharing site
- Does the file get uploaded and stored, and for how long?
- Who can open the link, and can you revoke it?
- On a shared network, who can see your device?
- Accept files only from devices you recognise, as you would with any download.
Questions
Does Snapdrop store my files?
snapdrop.net does: its page says files are stored by LimeWire and a link without an account lasts 3 days. The original open source Snapdrop at snapdrop.me sends between browsers on the same network instead.
Is PairDrop safe?
PairDrop's FAQ says files are sent directly between devices, encrypted in transit by WebRTC, and never reach a server on the same network. Paired devices behind NAT go through its TURN server. It also says you still have to trust the PairDrop server, and that a zero-trust design is planned.
Is tosstome end-to-end encrypted?
Direct transfers are, by the browser's WebRTC encryption (DTLS). When a direct connection is not possible, files go through a relay on Cloudflare that keeps nothing; that path is encrypted with TLS between each device and Cloudflare but is not end to end yet.