Google adds AI-powered scam protection to Android and Google Messages

Key points

• Opt-in enhanced protection in Google Messages uses cloud-based Gemini models to assess unrecognized senders' intentions, rolling out in coming weeks.
• Gemini Nano on-device checks real-time web signals in unfamiliar URLs to flag malicious links before they open.
• Android will block apps from enabling call forwarding, alert users when an attempt is made, and hide sensitive info during screen-sharing in Chrome.
• Chat scam detection expands beyond Pixel to Honor, Motorola, Oppo, OnePlus, Xiaomi and others, reaching hundreds of millions more users this year.

Why it matters for marketers: Marketers sending messages to Android users may face more filtering of unrecognized senders, so sender identity and link trust matter more.