Google Confirms New Hacker Protection For 3 Billion Android Users

Google Confirms New Hacker Protection For 3 Billion Android Users

July 11, 2025

Advanced Protection for Android Users

Google has confirmed a new set of advanced security features to protect its 3 billion Android users from hackers. The new protection system, dubbed Advanced Protection, is designed to tailor security settings to individual risk profiles.

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." With this in mind, the company has introduced two new defense features: Advanced Protection and System Services Settings.

Advanced Protection: A Device-Level Security Setting

A device-level security setting for Android users most at risk is provided by Advanced Protection. This program integrates with Chrome on Android in three specific ways:

  • At-risk users must join the Advanced Protection Program with their Google accounts.
  • The account will require phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication methods and enable Advanced Protection on any of the user's Android devices.

Advanced Protection acts as an extension to Google's existing Advanced Protection Program, providing a single control point for at-risk users on Android that enables important security settings across applications. This new feature is available on Google Android 16 in Chrome version 137 and later.

A new page will be introduced to manage background services that help keep devices safe, titled System Services Settings. This control center for background services will list the services and make updating them more efficient and effective.

These services are critical in terms of smartphone security, as they ensure the heartbeat of your Android device is kept updated with the latest security updates. The new System Services Settings page is expected to arrive with the July Google System Services update, while Advanced Protection is available on Google Android 16 in Chrome version 137 and later.

Conclusion

Google has confirmed two new sets of defense features to protect its Android users from hackers. With Advanced Protection and System Services Settings, the company aims to provide a comprehensive security solution for its 3 billion users. By providing device-level security settings and a control center for background services, Google is taking significant steps towards improving smartphone security.