Overview
- Google detailed a broad Android 17 safety push during Tuesday's Android Show that centers on verified bank-call checks.
- When a call claims to be from your bank, Android will query the bank’s app to confirm it and will hang up spoofed calls, with an initial rollout in the coming weeks on Android 11+ for Revolut, Itaú and Nubank.
- Live Threat Detection is expanding to flag SMS forwarding, accessibility overlays, apps that hide or change icons, and secret background launches, with dynamic rule updates planned in the second half of 2026.
- Find Hub’s Mark as lost will require biometrics to unlock a flagged phone, hide Quick Settings, and block new Wi‑Fi or Bluetooth links, while default‑on theft protections expand to Android 17 devices and to Android 10+ in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and the UK.
- Rollouts will vary by device, bank and region, with Chrome scanning APK downloads, Pixel getting OS build verification backed by a public ledger, OTP codes hidden for three hours, and a carrier option to ship 2G turned off.