Bad actors and malware pose a significant threat to Android devices, and over time, Google has taken various measures to tackle these issues. Now, Google is stepping up its efforts, starting with Google Pixel devices, with a new feature called Live Threat Detection (part of the Google Play Protect service). Essentially, this feature detects potentially harmful and dangerous apps on your phone in real time, alerting you instantly. This means you can take immediate action to protect yourself from harmful apps identified by the Android system.
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Google Pixel’s Live Threat Detection: How It Works
Google explains that the system monitors the activity patterns of apps, focusing on those that attempt to hide their behaviour or go dormant before becoming suspicious. For now, Live Threat Detection will be available exclusively on Google Pixel devices and will primarily focus on identifying stalkerware—apps that can collect personal data without user consent. However, Google plans to expand this feature to detect other types of harmful apps in the future.
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Currently, this feature is available on Pixel 6 and later models, but Google has announced it will eventually extend to devices from other manufacturers in the “coming months.”
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Scam Detection Feature Using Google’s On-Device Pixel AI
Google is also rolling out a scam detection system in the US. This new feature, available for Pixel 6 and newer devices, uses Google’s on-device AI to alert users about potential scams during calls. By detecting suspicious conversation patterns and scam indicators, it provides both audio and haptic alerts, as well as a visual warning that the call may be a scam.
By default, this feature is turned off, but you can enable it for your calls. Google assures users that the AI detection model operates entirely on the device, meaning no conversation transcriptions are sent to Google servers, ensuring user privacy is maintained.
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