Google rolls out its smart AI scam detector for the Pixel Phone app

Scam Detection is here, for some

· TechRadar

News By David Nield published 14 November 2024

The on-screen scam detection warning (Image credit: Google)
  • AI-powered Scam Detection feature rolling out for Pixel Phone app
  • Feature scans audio from incoming calls and sends scam alerts
  • Currently only available in the beta version of the app for US users

Having announced the feature back at Google I/O 2024 in May, Google is now rolling out its AI-powered Scam Detection feature for the Pixel Phone app – though for now it's only available in the beta version for US users.

The rollout was announced by Google in a blog post (via 9to5Google), with the promise that they'll be appearing on other Android devices besides Pixels in the future. For now, the Pixel 6 from 2021 and all later Pixels are eligible for the update.

As we previously reported, the feature uses on-board AI to scan the audio from your incoming calls. If the algorithms detect that you might be getting scammed, you'll see an alert to that effect on the Phone app screen.

"For example, if a caller claims to be from your bank and asks you to urgently transfer funds due to an alleged account breach, Scam Detection will process the call to determine whether the call is likely spam and, if so, can provide an audio and haptic alert and visual warning that the call may be a scam," explains Google.

Local processing

The feature is available on all Pixels from the Pixel 6 onwards, including the Pixel 7a (Image credit: Future / James Ide)

While the thought of AI listening to your calls is a little unnerving, this is all handled locally, with no data sent back to the cloud: the Pixel 9 phones use the built-in Gemini Nano, and older Pixels use "other robust Google on-device machine learning models".

While the rise of generative AI certainly has its benefits, it's also proving to be something of a headache in terms of digital security. Fraudsters are making use of the tech to create scam calls, while the good guys are fighting back with their own AI operators.

The new feature adds to the suite of security protections already available in the Phone app for Pixels. Those protections include Call Screen, which can answer calls with a bot to see what the caller wants before you get involved.

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