Staying One Step Ahead: Strengthening Android’s Lead in Scam Protection
Posted by Lyubov Farafonova, Product Manager, Phone by Google; Alberto Pastor Nieto, Sr.
Posted by Lyubov Farafonova, Product Manager, Phone by Google; Alberto Pastor Nieto, Sr. Product Manager Google Messages and RCS Spam and Abuse We’ve shared how Android’s proactive, multi-layered scam defenses utilize Google AI to protect users around the world from over 10 billion suspected malicious calls and messages every month 1 . While that scale is significant, the true impact of these protections is best understood through the stories of the individuals they help keep safe every day. Even knowing how these scams work, it was convincing in the moment." The turning point came when his phone displayed a Scam Detection warning during the call, which provided a critical moment to pause and reflect.
We are committed to building on this foundation by expanding our AI-powered protections to more users and devices, while rolling out new features that utilize on-device AI to defend against increasingly sophisticated threats. We are bringing these protections to more of our users through new regional expansion and availability on new devices. Scam Detection for phone calls on Google Pixel devices is available in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, and Spain. Scam Detection is already helping millions of users to stay safe from scammers, and we are expanding this feature to more manufacturers, starting with the Samsung Galaxy S26 series in the U.S.
As scammers evolve their tactics and create more convincing and personalized threats, we’re using the best of Google AI to stay one step ahead. A recent evaluation by Counterpoint Research found that Android smartphones provide the most comprehensive AI-powered protections of any mobile platform. To help protect you during phone calls, Scam Detection alerts you if a caller uses speech patterns commonly associated with fraud. To preserve your privacy, the phone conversation processed by Scam Detection is neither stored on your device, nor shared outside of the device.
1: This total comprises all instances where a message or call was proactively blocked or where a user was alerted to potential spam or scam activity.
What changed
A recent evaluation by Counterpoint Research found that Android smartphones provide the most com We’ve shared how Android’s proactive, multi-layered scam defenses utilize Google AI to protect users around the world from over 10 billion suspected malicious calls and messages every month1.
To make this possible, we’ve now expanded Scam Detection for Google Messages to more than 20 countries.
The added power of Gemini’s on-device model allows for a much more nuanced analysis of complex conversational threats.
For example, it can better detect the subtle conversational patterns used in job offer scams or sophisticated romance baiting scams (also known as “pig butchering”), a deceptive tactic where a scammer builds a long-term "relationship" with a potential victim to gain their trust, before tricking them into a fraudulent investment.
These advanced protections are now rolling out on Google Pixel 10 series and other select devices, and will be available on the Samsung Galaxy S26 series.
Our goal is to provide you with peace of mind so you can continue to connect and communicate with confidence, knowing our multi-layered defenses are there to help protect your financial and personal data against mobile scams.
Who is affected
We are committed to building on this foundation by expanding our AI-powered protections to more users and devices, while rolling out new features that utilize on-device AI to defend against increasingly sophisticated threats.
We are bringing these protections to more of our users through new regional expansion and availability on new devices.
Scam Detection for phone calls on Google Pixel devices is available in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, and Spain.
Scam Detection is already helping millions of users to stay safe from scammers, and we are expanding this feature to more manufacturers, starting with the Samsung Galaxy S26 series in the U.S.
We are continuing to work with our partners to bring these industry-leading protections to even more users.
Powered by Gemini’s on-device model, Scam Detection provides intelligent protection against scam calls while ensuring that the processing stays on your device.
How organizations are responding
As scammers evolve their tactics and create more convincing and personalized threats, we’re using the best of Google AI to stay one step ahead.
A recent evaluation by Counterpoint Research found that Android smartphones provide the most comprehensive AI-powered protections of any mobile platform.
To help protect you during phone calls, Scam Detection alerts you if a caller uses speech patterns commonly associated with fraud.
To preserve your privacy, the phone conversation processed by Scam Detection is neither stored on your device, nor shared outside of the device.
To ensure you stay in total control of your experience, Scam Detection is turned off by default.
When enabled, the feature only applies to calls identified as potential scams and is never used in calls with your contacts.
What defenders should do now
1: This total comprises all instances where a message or call was proactively blocked or where a user was alerted to potential spam or scam activity.
What to watch next
Watch for additional exploitation reporting, newly published indicators, and changes to vendor guidance.
What remains unknown
The available reporting does not establish whether the issue is being actively exploited in the wild.
The available reporting does not establish who is behind the activity, if an attacker is involved.