There is no native option to disable automatic Wallet opening on iPhones near NFC readers

Question

Level 1

4 points

There is no native option to disable automatic Wallet opening on iPhones near NFC readers

Whenever any iPhone is held near any NFC reader, Wallet automatically opens without user input. I have been told by Apple Support that the solution to prevent this behavior is to remove all cards from my Wallet app... This is impractical. Another solution I found is to put the iPhone in airplane mode near the reader. This is a problem, especially if the iPhone is used to program NFC card readers since it removes the ability to communicate with the reader entirely.

Furthermore while configuring the card reader, the user must repeatedly close out of wallet in order to continue using the programming app. This brings the issue from inconvenient, to making the iPhone unusable to effectively complete the necessary task.

Troubleshooting has led me to find forums as old as 9 years old regarding this exact problem. This seems like an extremely user-hostile feature that has been ignored for almost a decade.

Why is there still no way for an iPhone user to natively disable this feature?

When can the community expect a solution for this?

What was the intention behind the decision to force this behavior on every iPhone user? It's already incredibly easy to double tap the power button to open wallet, so I'm struggling to understand the logic of having all my secured payment methods forced to open up automatically without my consent when around any NFC reader.

Maybe I'm missing something. If anyone has a solution to fix this problem without using 3rd party apps, I'm willing to try it out. I was informed this is not a security issue but I disagree.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: NFC Readers Force Wallet on Any iPhone to Open Repeatedly Without User Consent. No Current Method to Disable Natively.

iPhone 16 Pro

Posted on Feb 6, 2026 7:27 AM

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Answer 1

Jeff Donald

Level 8

45,948 points

Feb 6, 2026 7:44 AM in response to m240Butter

You may feel this is just semantics, but it does not open the Wallet app. What happens is the Apple Pay system is activated and default card is readied. No payment can process without a double click of side button and/or biometric authentication. The mechanism at play is called Field Detection and is considered a security feature. It’s designed as a convenience for Apple Pay users and helps speed them through the checkout process. Banks prefer this method as it reduces friction (customer frustration) at checkout.

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Answer 2

muguy

Level 10

91,556 points

Feb 6, 2026 7:44 AM in response to m240Butter

Sounds like your device is working at intended. If you have feedback, visit Apple.com/feedback.

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Answer 3

KiltedTim

Level 10

226,632 points

Feb 6, 2026 8:00 AM in response to m240Butter

m240Butter wrote:

Why is there still no way for an iPhone user to natively disable this feature?

When can the community expect a solution for this?

What was the intention behind the decision to force this behavior on every iPhone user? It's already incredibly easy to double tap the power button to open wallet, so I'm struggling to understand the logic of having all my secured payment methods forced to open up automatically without my consent when around any NFC reader.

No one here can address any question as to why Apple made the design decisions they did. This is a user forum. Apple is not here.

As for it happening without your consent, that's bull. You accepted the terms of use when you activated the phone. You gave consent when you did that.

Maybe I'm missing something. If anyone has a solution to fix this problem without using 3rd party apps, I'm willing to try it out. I was informed this is not a security issue but I disagree.

You're free to disagree. You are entitled to your wrong opinion.

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Answer 4

Feb 6, 2026 8:41 AM in response to m240Butter

m240Butter wrote:

Maybe I'm missing something. If anyone has a solution to fix this problem without using 3rd party apps, I'm willing to try it out. I was informed this is not a security issue but I disagree.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: NFC Readers Force Wallet on Any iPhone to Open Repeatedly Without User Consent. No Current Method to Disable Natively.

There is no problem, thus there is no solution to a problem which doesn't exist. Your phone is operating exactly as it was designed to work. If you don't want to authorize a payment from your iPhone at a card reader, don't authorized a payment. Payments MUST be authorized by you and you alone.

You seem to be misunderstanding how NFC works on iPhone, but that doesn't mean there is a problem which needs to be addressed.

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