Google Confirms New Hacker Protection For 3 Billion Android Users
Google has taken a major step towards bolstering the security of its Android users, confirming the availability of advanced protection against hacker attacks for the vast majority of its 3 billion users.
As the company continues to roll out security updates and patches, it's easy to get lost in the noise. From Chrome browser vulnerabilities to Google Messages sender verification and new Gmail features, there are countless updates vying for attention. However, with the number of Android users being targeted by hackers reaching an all-time high, it's essential that these updates don't fly under the radar.
According to Google, "Less sophisticated attacks by commodity malware can be very lucrative for attackers when done at scale, but so can sophisticated attacks on targeted users." This latest move aims to address this issue head-on, introducing Advanced Protection as an extension to its existing Advanced Protection Program.
Advanced Protection acts as a device-level security setting for Android users who are deemed most at risk. It integrates with Chrome on Android in three key ways:
- "We additionally recommend at-risk users join the Advanced Protection Program with their Google accounts," said the Google Chrome security team.
- "Which will require the account to use phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication methods and enable Advanced Protection on any of the user’s Android devices."
This advanced security measure provides a single control point for at-risk users, enabling important security settings across applications. For those looking to take advantage of this new feature, Google recommends joining the Advanced Protection Program with their Google accounts.
Advanced Protection is now available on Google Android 16 in Chrome version 137 and later. This means that users with these versions of the operating system and browser can access this enhanced security feature, providing them with an additional layer of protection against hacker attacks.