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iPhone trolls are using AirDrop to send images of a Space Sloth to strangers around the world

A photograph of a sloth in a spacesuit is being sent to unsuspecting iPhone users by pranksters who are exploiting a security loophole in Apple's AirDrop service.

Owners of Apple's iPhone who have upgraded to its latest iOS 8 software have reported receiving the photograph, known as 'Astronaut Slot or 'Space Sloth'.

A photographer and writer based in San Francisco is thought to have been the first to have used this to send unsolicited pictures of the Astronaut sloth to commuters while travelling to work by train. 

Josh Lowensohn said he began trolling strangers on the train with the image, which was created by artist Pedro Dionisio, to highlight the dangers of allowing an iPhone to receive files from anyone in the surrounding area.

The practice takes advantage of a security feature in Apple's AirDrop service, which allows users to share files wirelessly over WiFi and Bluetooth networks.

After upgrading the operating software, iPhones and iPads can be set to receive files from 'everyone' in the surrounding area.

It is thought to work within a range of around 30 feet.

But now it appears his prank has been adopted by others and is spreading around the world, with victims reporting being sent the image by AirDrop in London and New York.

Mr Lowensohn, who began trolling commuters in San Fransisco a year ago, insists he is not responsible for the appearance of the AstroSloth on iPhones in other cities as he has been 'landlocked' in California.

When contacted about the image appearing on phones in London, from iPhone users called AirSloth', he described the spread as both 'wonderful and terrible'.

He said: 'I certainly didn't invent the concept of sending strangers unsolicited files using AirDrop, but I'd like to think that I'm doing it in a way that's more fun than malicious.

'You could send much worse things, which I'm not so sure was well known by most people. 

'When I first started exploring this, artist Pedro Dionísio's sloth in a spacesuit seemed like a perfect fit: it was playful and disarming. 

'You could easily argue that this is not a nice thing to do to people, but I'd like to think that by leaving the feature set to "everyone," you're secretly hoping to see a sloth.'

While the picture of the sloth in the space suit is harmless - it originally started being shared over the internet in 2012 after artist Pedro Dionísio uploaded it to his deviantArt account - it highlights an important security loophole in the iPhone.

By allowing iPhone users to send unsolicited files to anyone with this setting turned on, it could allow hackers to install virus software that could allow them to eavesdrop or even take over devices.

In September Apple also extended its AirDrop service to include MacBooks and iMacs, meaning the number of devices that could be vulnerable are even greater.

For many the Astronaut Sloth may be simply an amusing way of trolling strangers to see their reaction upon receiving the photo.

It is a new twist on a prank that began in 2012 when people began replacing desktop images and screen savers of friends and colleagues with the picture.

Technology writer Harry McCracken is among those to have been targeted by the AirSloth prank, sent from an AirDrop user who apparently shares his name with notorious American murder and gangster Whitey Bulger

The image quickly became a meme of its own as people replaced the heads of humans from other historic images and pictures. The image even began appearing on T-Shirts, coffee mugs and bags.

Among those to have received the sloth picture over AirDrop Harry McCracken, former editor in chief of PC World magazine and technology editor of New York based magazine Fast Company.

Other victims have reported being sent the space sloth in Kensington, London, an AirDrop user identifying themselves only as Sloth's 'iPhone'.

For Mr Lowensohn, the thrill of watching the reactions of his fellow commuters while keeping a straight face, saw him troll stranger after stranger.

Writing on the website The Verge, he said: 'I've done it perhaps a hundred times, and the thrill has not waned one little bit. 

'I've seen reactions that range from amused to confused, but never has anyone been visibly angered.

'The beauty of the technology is that your targets can be far away by the time you've done the deed.'

Apple's AirDrop allows iPhone users to send pictures and files to other Apple devices over WiFi and Bluetooth networks but those who leave the service set to receive from 'Everyone' (right) are vulnerable to hackers