Android will use Gemini to warn you of fraudulent messages
Google announced a number of new, expanding and upcoming scam protections for Android users, including an opt-in setting in its Messages app that uses Gemini AI to alert you to misleading messages. Enabling this setting will enable scam detection, which leverages Google’s most advanced Gemini models to assess sender intent and warn you if messages might come from a bad actor. In the Google example, the sender pretended to show the recipient a photo of himself with his dog. When told he had the wrong number, the sender attempted to communicate and asked the recipient for their name.
The company explained that Android analyzes messages in Private AI Compute, which encrypts and processes them in a secure space inaccessible to anyone, even Google. Gemini Nano will also perform an on-device scan of links in Messages to make sure they are safe before clicking on them. This will be available on Google Pixel 10+, Samsung Galaxy S26 series, Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Fold 8, among other selected devices. Additionally, Google has redesigned its scam warnings to give you more context and more time before tapping on links sent from numbers not in your contact list. The new opt-in security setting will be rolled out in the coming weeks.
After introducing scam detection to chat notifications on Pixel devices, Google is expanding its availability to more devices. The feature will warn you of potential scams right in the message notification, so you don’t even need to check it. Google has partnered with device makers including Honor, Motorola, OPPO, OnePlus, realme, vivo, and Xiaomi, who are expected to enable the feature later this year.
Meanwhile, all devices running Android 15 and above will get automatic screen sharing privacy later this month. The feature will hide passwords, banking information, and credit card security numbers by default if you share your screen with Chrome or Android WebView open. In early December, the company is also rolling out call forwarding protection to Pixel and other select devices. The feature will prevent apps from secretly enabling call forwarding in the background. Android will warn you if a scammer tries to trick you into entering an MMI transfer code (a short string of numbers) to activate call forwarding on your device.
Google also announced that it has partnered with Brazilian banks to combat bank identity theft. To ensure that it is indeed a banking call, Android will perform a verification of incoming calls. If the caller does not pass the check, Android will hang up and notify you. Google said Android has already blocked more than three million fake calls since the feature launched in June. It’s unclear if and when it will bring the security tool to the United States, but the company said it will work with more partner banks in the future.
