13:00Machine-translated from Azerbaijani by AIRead in Azerbaijani
Google Introduces New Anti-Scam Features for Android
Google has announced new anti-scam features for Android as part of Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The main new feature is an “enhanced protection mode” that users can enable in the Google Messages app. The mode will use Gemini AI models in the cloud to check messages from unknown people. This will allow the other party’s fraudulent intent to be detected sooner. The feature will become available in the coming weeks.
The new mode identifies scams using the Private AI Compute system. According to Google, data is encrypted and analyzed in a separate secure environment, and no outside parties, including the company, can view it. Cloud-based analysis supplements the checks performed on the phone. This helps detect more sophisticated attacks that conceal their tracks. The same system also works in Pixel Screenshots and other apps. The mode will also strengthen protection for links. Before an unfamiliar link is opened, Gemini Nano, running on the phone, will consult up-to-date security information from the internet and assess whether the link is trustworthy. The feature will work on the Pixel 10+ and Samsung Galaxy S26 series. The list also includes the Galaxy Z Flip 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8, and selected other devices. Warnings for links received from numbers that are not in the user’s contacts will provide clearer explanations. The feature that detects scams directly on the device in chat notifications will no longer be limited to Pixel models. HONOR, Infinix, iQOO, itel, JOVI, and Motorola devices will be added to the list. OPPO, OnePlus, realme, TECNO, vivo, and Xiaomi models will also receive this protection. The system will check suspicious content at the notification stage, before the message is opened. Google plans to make the feature available to hundreds of millions of additional users by the end of this year. Google Phone and Google Messages already flag 5 million suspicious calls and messages each month. YouGov conducted a survey of 4,500 adults commissioned by the company. Of the participants, 40% said they were very or extremely concerned about mobile scams. Users of the Samsung Messages app, which was shut down in July, had also been advised to switch to Google Messages.
On Android 15 and later versions, the automatic hiding of private information during screen sharing will also work in Chrome and Android WebView. Android WebView is a system component that opens web pages within apps. When the screen is being shared, sensitive content such as passwords and banking information in input fields will be hidden automatically. This will prevent the person viewing the screen from seeing that information. Google will also prevent apps from enabling call forwarding in the background without the user’s knowledge. This protection is intended to prevent one-time codes from being intercepted and accounts from being stolen. If a scammer persuades a user to enter an MMI code in the phone’s dialer that forwards calls to another number, Android will display a warning before the code is activated. The feature will begin rolling out to Pixel and selected other devices in early December.
The new mode identifies scams using the Private AI Compute system. According to Google, data is encrypted and analyzed in a separate secure environment, and no outside parties, including the company, can view it. Cloud-based analysis supplements the checks performed on the phone. This helps detect more sophisticated attacks that conceal their tracks. The same system also works in Pixel Screenshots and other apps. The mode will also strengthen protection for links. Before an unfamiliar link is opened, Gemini Nano, running on the phone, will consult up-to-date security information from the internet and assess whether the link is trustworthy. The feature will work on the Pixel 10+ and Samsung Galaxy S26 series. The list also includes the Galaxy Z Flip 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8, and selected other devices. Warnings for links received from numbers that are not in the user’s contacts will provide clearer explanations. The feature that detects scams directly on the device in chat notifications will no longer be limited to Pixel models. HONOR, Infinix, iQOO, itel, JOVI, and Motorola devices will be added to the list. OPPO, OnePlus, realme, TECNO, vivo, and Xiaomi models will also receive this protection. The system will check suspicious content at the notification stage, before the message is opened. Google plans to make the feature available to hundreds of millions of additional users by the end of this year. Google Phone and Google Messages already flag 5 million suspicious calls and messages each month. YouGov conducted a survey of 4,500 adults commissioned by the company. Of the participants, 40% said they were very or extremely concerned about mobile scams. Users of the Samsung Messages app, which was shut down in July, had also been advised to switch to Google Messages. On Android 15 and later versions, the automatic hiding of private information during screen sharing will also work in Chrome and Android WebView. Android WebView is a system component that opens web pages within apps. When the screen is being shared, sensitive content such as passwords and banking information in input fields will be hidden automatically. This will prevent the person viewing the screen from seeing that information. Google will also prevent apps from enabling call forwarding in the background without the user’s knowledge. This protection is intended to prevent one-time codes from being intercepted and accounts from being stolen. If a scammer persuades a user to enter an MMI code in the phone’s dialer that forwards calls to another number, Android will display a warning before the code is activated. The feature will begin rolling out to Pixel and selected other devices in early December.