Google is narrowing the security and privacy gap between Android and iPhone, with Pixel the unbeatable front-runner when it comes those new features. Now users are reporting the best update yet — it’s a single click but it completely changes your phone.
We’re talking Android 16’s game-changing Advanced Data Protection, which locks down Android in an iPhone-like manner preventing any apps being installed from outside Play Store, still Android’s biggest security and privacy vulnerability. This wasn’t expected in beta, and so will surprise users seeing this new setting now.
The new mode also stops users connecting to dangerous networks, enforces safe browsing and enables the new scam and fraud defenses that Google is rolling out. Per Android Authority, Google is now “letting Android 16 testers try Advanced Protection mode for maximum phone security,” helping users who enable the new setting “secure your phone from outside threats, even yourself, in one click.”
Google says this new mode provides its “strongest protections against targeted attacks,” advising that it’s for “users who need heightened security.” But in my view it’s much more widely applicable and adds sensible precautions for everyday users, especially those with less expertise who would welcome the reassurance. In short, it turns a Pixel and eventually other Androids into something more akin to an iPhone.
Android is also moving ahead of iPhone with it’s new Intrusion Detection feature, which in an “industry-first,” Google says, “securely backs up device logs in a privacy-preserving and tamper-resistant way, accessible only to the user. These logs enable a forensic analysis if a device compromise is ever suspected.”
You cannot tweak Google’s new security mode, it’s either on or off. It’s disabled by default, but I’d recommend you enable it when it’s available to you. Either in beta now or in the stable Android 16 release which is expected from next month.
As Android Authority says, “it’s like a security blanket that aims to make sure your device is safe from known threats, like no sideloading, USB data access, and more.”
Google says there will be more to come: “We are committed to continuously expanding the security and privacy capabilities within Advanced Protection, so users can benefit from the best of Android’s powerful security features.” That includes an API enabling third-party apps to shore up their own security when this is enabled.