Though Android offers some protection if your phone is lost or stolen, Google announced new safety features. After testing them in Brazil, they are starting to put these important protections on phones in the US and other places.
Google is slowly adding three security features to help Android phones that are lost or taken. However, not everyone sees all three tools at once. This suggests the rollout is still happening gradually. Also, some people on the beta version of Google Play services see the protections.
How To Check For The New Safety Tools
There are simple ways to check if your Android phone has the new theft protection features:
- Search “theft protection” in your phone’s Settings.
- Go to Settings > Google > Personal & device safety > All services.
Then look for the section called “Theft protection.”
Here are more details on the three new safety features:
- Theft Detection Lock – This uses AI to protect your phone if it thinks someone snatched it from your hand. It will automatically get locked.
- Offline Device Lock – Locks your screen when “a thief tries to disconnect your phone for prolonged periods of time,”, even without the internet.
- Remote Lock – This lets you lock your phone from anywhere by signing in online.
These protections work on Android 10 or newer. So most people can use them. But we don’t know yet when all Android devices will get the new theft protection tools.
