Android phones are significantly more secure than before, but Google is holding you back. There's a lesser-known feature that's disabled by default, and turning it on is an easy way to seriously improve security.
What is Advanced Protection on Android?
The feature in question is called “Advanced Protection” and it's actually six categories of settings under one roof. Instead of navigating through a dozen different menus, this centralized location lets you find all the advanced security measures available on your device. However, you will have to enable it yourself. Additional protection is not enabled by default.
But why is it disabled? The extra protection is not necessarily meant for the average person. This is especially valuable for people in high-risk professions, such as politicians, journalists, public figures or business executives. Of course, that doesn't mean you can't benefit from it too. Everything from theft prevention to website security to spam filtering is included, and these things are important to all Android users.
6 categories of additional protection
As mentioned, Advanced Protection consists of six categories of settings. Some Advanced Security settings are available separately, such as Caller Identification and Spam in the Google Phone app. But turning on Advanced Protection allows you to do this and more with one big switch. Let's figure it out.
Device Security
This section tells you how to protect your phone if it is lost, stolen, or confiscated. It includes three functions:
- Theft detection lock: Automatically blocked when movement indicates theft.
- Offline device locking: Automatically locks when the device is offline.
- Idle reboot: Reboots the device if it remains locked for 3 days.
Applications
This section helps protect you from malicious apps or apps that negatively impact your device's performance. It includes three functions:
- Google Play Protection: Scan for unsafe applications and malware.
- Unknown applications: Blocks installation and updating of applications from unknown sources.
- Memory Tagging Extension: Protects against memory corruption in supported applications.
Networks
Next is the network security section, and there is currently only one feature you can enable in it.
- 2G network protection: Avoids 2G networks which are less secure.
Internet
As you've probably already realized, this entire section is dedicated to protecting you from all sorts of Internet-related nonsense. There are three features that will be included:
- Android Safe Browsing: Live threat protection blocks malicious web pages.
- Chrome Browsing: Warns you before visiting sites that do not support HTTPS.
- Javascript protection: Disables some advanced risk mitigation features.
Google phone
Now we move on to the sections with features that you probably already have enabled even without Advanced Security. Starting with the Google Phone app, there are two functions:
- Caller ID and spam: Identifies business and spam numbers.
- Automatic call screen: Filters suspicious calls and rejects spam.
Google Messages
For text messages, Google Messages includes two features:
- Spam protection: Filters spam and alerts you to scams.
- Suspicious links: Warns about links from unknown senders.
How to enable Advanced Protection
If everything on this list sounds like what you need, it's easy to cover the entire spectrum in one go. There may be some inconvenience, but for most people the safety benefit outweighs the occasional hassle. To enable Advanced Protection:
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Open your phone's Settings app.
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Go to Security & Privacy or search for Advanced Protection.
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Scroll down and select “Advanced Protection.”
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Turn on Device Protection. You'll see a pop-up with more information – click Enable to continue.
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Finally, you need to restart your phone to complete the process.
That's it! Additional protection will be enabled after the phone restarts. If security is one of your top priorities, there's no better way to ensure maximum protection. If some of these features are interfering with your phone's use, you can also go back and turn off Advanced Protection. A reboot will also be required for the changes to take effect.
What to do if you forgot your Android phone's PIN, pattern or password
Android protects your device by requiring a PIN, pattern, or full password. What happens if you forget your configured security method? If you're lucky, you'll be able to get back easily, but it may not be possible. Even if you use fingerprint or face unlock to secure your Android phone, neither of these methods can be used as a “primary” security method. For example, when you restart your phone, it will require you to enter a PIN, pattern, or password before you can use fingerprint or face unlock. So let's look at your options.
