Google announced Tuesday that Android is rolling out fake call detection to protect against AI impersonation scams. The feature will roll out globally on Phone by Google on Android 12+ devices this month, starting with Pixel devices.
As people increasingly refuse to answer calls from unknown numbers, scammers are changing their tactics by spoofing trusted phone numbers and using AI deepfake technology to sound like authority figures, family members or employers.
For example, a person may receive a phone call showing the caller ID “Mom” and the voice may sound exactly like her, but the caller is actually a scammer using AI tools to impersonate her and ask for money for a fake emergency.
The new feature is enabled by default and works automatically in the background.
Google explains that the new feature works somewhat like a “digital handshake between devices.” When a contact calls you and you’re both using Phone by Google, their phone sends a silent confirmation tone to your device to verify that the call is legitimate and actually coming from their phone.
“If an imposter tries to impersonate your trusted contact, that initial confirmation signal will be missing,” Google explained in a blog post. “Your device will immediately notice this and ping your contact’s real device to double-check. If the real device tells it ‘I’m not calling right now’, you’ll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately.”
The tech giant notes that it built this capability on top of Rich Communications Services (RCS), enabling other applications and companies to adopt the technology.
The fake call detector launch was announced alongside other updates from Android, including a new Google Photos feature that lets users mix and match outfits and try them on virtually. The new “wardrobe” feature captures the outfits you wear in your photo library, turning them into snapshots that you can browse on your phone. The feature will roll out next week to eligible users in the US, India, and Brazil on Android 10+.
Additionally, Google Play Books is getting a new Catch Me feature that lets users jump back into a story with a recap. Users can also highlight a passage to ask questions. These features are rolling out today for select English titles.
Google also makes it possible to search entire outfits with the “Circle to Search” feature. Now the feature will be able to find every item in an outfit at once, eliminating the need to search piece by piece. This update is now available on all Android 14+ devices with Circle to Search.
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