Android launches new protections against phone call scammers
Google is rolling out several new features to protect Android users from falling victim to phone call scams. Now, Android will automatically block users from sideloading an app for the first time from a web browser, messaging app, or other service while on a call with an unknown contact.
Google will also stop users from giving an app accessibility permissions while talking on the phone, helping to prevent a potentially dangerous app from gaining control of their device and stealing personal information. If you try to adjust these settings during a call, Google will display a message saying: “This setting is blocked to protect your device.” It also warns users that “scammers may try to take control of your device by asking you to allow accessibility access for an app.”
Google already blocks users from disabling its app security service, Play Protect, during phone calls. The company says these protections happen “completely on device” and should help prevent scammers from tricking users into downloading malicious apps and enabling sensitive permissions. The new protections are available on devices with Android 16.
Google also announced that it’s testing a new Android feature to discourage users from opening their banking app while sharing their screen on a call. The feature, which is rolling out to banking apps in the UK, including Monzo, NatWest, and Revolut to start, is meant to combat screen-sharing scams where fraudsters impersonate banks or government agencies to convince victims to perform harmful actions, like bank transfers.
When users try to launch a banking app while sharing their screen with an unknown contact, Google will display a pop-up to warn of a “likely scam,” while offering an “end call” button that users can press to immediately hang up and stop sharing their screen. If users choose not to end the call, they’ll have to wait 30 seconds before they can continue to share their banking app’s screen. This will be available to devices running Android 11 and newer, and Google says it will “assess the results of the pilot” before rolling it out more widely.
These features build upon Android’s growing scam protection tools. Last year, it started using AI to detect if a caller might be a scammer and encourage users to end these calls. It also rolled out AI-powered scam detection in Google Messages, which has expanded to more types of scams, such as those that attempt to collect personal information through phony toll road billing messages, crypto scams, financial impersonation scams, and more.