Google launches fake call detection on Android to combat AI deepfake impersonation scams

Google rolls out fake call detection to protect against AI deepfake impersonation scams

Google announced on Tuesday that Android is launching fake call detection to protect against AI deepfake impersonation scams. The feature is rolling out globally in Phone by Google to Android 12+ devices this month, starting with Pixel devices. As people increasingly refuse to answer calls from unknown numbers, scammers are shifting their tactics by spoofing trusted phone numbers and using AI deepfake technology to sound like authority figures, family members, or employers. For example, a person may receive a phone call showing the caller ID "Mom," and the voice may sound exactly like her, but the caller is actually a scammer using AI tools to impersonate her and request money for a fake emergency. The new feature is on by default and works automatically behind the scenes. Google explains that the new feature works kind of like a "digital handshake between devices." When a contact calls you, and you're both using Phone by Google, their phone sends a silent confirmation signal to your device to verify the call is legitimate and actually coming from their phone. "If a scammer tries to impersonate your trusted contact, that initial confirmation signal will be missing," Google explained in a blog post. "Your device will instantly notice this and ping your contact's actual device to double-check. If their real device says, 'I'm not making a call right now,' you'll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately." The tech giant notes that it built this feature on top of Rich Communication Services (RCS), making it possible for other apps and companies to adopt the technology. The launch of fake call detection was announced alongside other updates from Android, including a new Google Photos feature that lets users mix and match outfits and try them on virtually. The new "wardrobe" feature catalogs the clothes you're wearing in your photo library by turning them into snapshots you can browse on your phone. The feature is rolling out next week to eligible users in the U.S., India, and Brazil with Android 10+. Additionally, Google Play Books is getting a new "Catch me up" feature that lets users jump back into a story with a recap. Users can also highlight a passage to ask questions. These features are rolling out today for select English titles. Google is also making it possible to search entire outfits with its "Circle to Search" feature. Now, the feature will be able to find every item in an outfit at once, getting rid of the need to search piece by piece. This update is now available on all Android 14+ devices that have Circle to Search.

Android Is Fighting Phone Scams With a New Feature to Prove Who's Calling

I've been covering spam calling for years, so when Google offered me details about a new Android feature built to detect and flag spoofed calls, I was ready to hear more. What I didn't expect from the demo was to hear my own voice. "I'm so excited to be interviewing you today about this new fake call detection feature!" I heard myself saying while a headshot I've used publicly for years popped up on the demo device. The caller ID name said "Lily." "Unfortunately, I lost my wallet and I'm stuck. Any chance you can Venmo me so I can take an Uber to the interview?" As my disembodied voice calmly made the ask, a pop up appeared as an overlay on the regular call screen: "This may not be Lily. Someone may be pretending to call from your contact's number." For Android phones calling each other, the new feature does a digital validity check and flags with a pop-up warning if a call isn't coming from your contact's smartphone and may be a scam. When the feature flags a call as a scam, it instantly removes the contact photo from the backdrop of the call to underscore the seriousness of the situation (not shown in the prototype demo Google made for WIRED). And the feature also changes the entry in Android's recent call log to say "Unknown caller" instead of displaying the contact name. Spam calls have been a scourge for decades, and the threat has only ramped up as attackers have started incorporating AI voice-cloning tools into their attacks -- making it possible to convincingly mimic an acquaintance of a victim, or even a family member, in real-time. And while a years-long push has improved detection of traditional robocalling, it hasn't eliminated the problem, and not all spam calls get flagged. Those calls that still slip through the cracks are particularly problematic as attackers focus their attention on impersonation scams -- making it look like their call is coming from a number you trust, or at least recognize, and then using AI tools to sound like the person you expect when you pick up. With these types of invasive and potentially devastating scams on the rise, Dave Kleidermacher, Android's vice president of security and privacy, and Eugene Liderman, director of Android security and privacy product, say that there was a real desire within Google to move defenses for victims forward. And they emphasized that while an obvious strategy is to attempt to fight fire with fire -- to use AI tools to help detect voice clones in calls -- this strategy alone is insufficient. It can have false positives and false negatives, but it can also feed an endless arms race between attackers and defenders. "We're always looking at whether there is a provable way, something much higher confidence that we can do," Kleidermacher says. The feature is built on the RCS communication standard and baked into the Google Dialer. Beginning today, it will start rolling out in updates for all Android phones running Android 12 (from 2021) and later. The mechanism uses RCS to digitally bind your phone number with your actual smartphone handset. When you call another Android user, your device will send what Kleidermacher describes as "a real-time, silent background confirmation signal" to the device of the person you're calling to verify the legitimacy of your call. If that hardware-based confirmation is missing, the Google Dialer will flag the call. "If you're calling me and we're in each others' mutual contacts databases, and we're both using the Google dialer that has this capability built into it, then I will always know if it's really you," Kleidermacher says. "If someone tries to call me through a VoIP session or some other mechanism and spoof your phone number and your voice, the Dialer will say that this is not you." The feature is meant to be very straightforward, and the pop-up for a potential scam call simply offers the option hang up. Phones running Android 12 or later are ubiquitous around the world, but for the feature to truly have an impact, it would need to be incorporated into basically every device, including Apple's iPhones. Google says it intentionally built the feature on RCS so it will be maximally interoperable with as many platforms as possible. Apple did not immediately return a request for comment about whether it has any plans to implement the feature or a similar one in its iOS mobile operating system. For now, Kleidermacher says he hopes the feature will play a role in protecting people from a type of scam that can fool anyone -- with potentially disastrous consequences. "Some of these attacks individually are just very devastating," he says. "People lose a lot, and it's very scary."

Google's Phone app will tell you if a scammer is impersonating one of your contacts

Google is launching a new feature for its Phone app that aims to protect you from AI impersonation scams. Now, when you receive a call from a scammer that appears to be coming from the same number as one of your contacts, Phone by Google will flag the call as suspicious so you can hang up. In a post explaining the update, Google describes impersonation scams as a growing threat, with the FBI reporting that Americans lost over $893 million to scams using AI in 2025. To carry out the attack, scammers spoof one of your contacts' phone numbers and then use AI-powered tech to make their voice sound like a friend, family member, or authority figure. The Phone by Google app will display a notification if you receive one of these fake calls, saying "Someone may be pretending to call from your contact's number," along with the option to end the call. Google is turning on this feature by default for users with Android 12 and later, starting with Pixel phones. This feature only works if you and a trusted contact both use Phone by Google, as a contact's device will send a "silent confirmation signal" that verifies the call is actually coming from your friend or family member. If a scammer tries to spoof your contact's number, "that initial confirmation signal will be missing," according to Google. The company notes that it built this feature atop end-to-end encrypted rich communication services (RCS) technology, allowing other apps to adopt it. Several other features are coming to Android devices along with this update, including the ability for kids under 13 to access Google's Personal Safety app. Kids will soon be able to display emergency contacts and medical information on their devices' lockscreens, as well as turn on car crash detection. Google is more widely rolling out support for Apple AirDrop, its AI-powered clothing try-on feature in Photos, and the ability to find items in an outfit with Circle to Search. Google Play Books users can also use a new AI-powered insights feature that can summarize what you've read so far in select titles or answer questions about a specific passage.

Google Will Soon Spot Fake Calls on Supported Android Phones

June's Android feature drop also expands AirDrop compatibility, Personal Safety features for kids, and fashion-finding options. A new update from Google will be able to tell you when to hang up on calls from friends and family -- because those pals and relatives are not actually on the line. This fake call detection feature, announced Tuesday, relies on encrypted back-channel communication between your phone and the Android phones of the real contacts being spoofed. Provided both devices run at least the 2021-vintage Android 12 and the Phone by Google app -- not a third-party dialer from Samsung or another firm -- your contact's phone will verify a real call by sending an end-to-end-encrypted confirmation signal to your phone. As Google explains, the absence of that signal will lead your device to ping the contact's device for confirmation: "If their real device says, 'I'm not making a call right now,' you'll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately." The threat model here targets both spoofed phone numbers -- easily generated with mobile apps -- and frighteningly effective AI deepfake audio tools. Today, your security-aware responses to a strange call from a family member suddenly asking for a financial or other favor include calling them back via phone or video, confirming that it's them by asking about a bit of shared experience that only they should know, or exchanging a secret word or phrase if you both thought to agree on one up-front. Google explains that this feature relies on the encrypted infrastructure of RCS messaging. For years, RCS was an Android-only proposition, but Apple's belated move to support RCS in iOS now includes end-to-end encryption for RCS chats between iPhone and Android users. So, while Google will first ship this feature on its own Pixel phones, its post says the technology here is open to "other apps and device manufacturers." Also Coming to Android... Also today, Google announced a set of additional Android features. The most relevant one for people with cross-platform contacts is expanded support for sending files to nearby iPhones via the QuickShare tool. Google first revealed this interoperability in November and has been steadily expanding its availability; Tuesday's post says AirDrop support will come to "more Android devices" but offers no further specifics. (For devices that still don't have this option, the free, open-source LocalSend can help bridge these platform gaps when installed on both an Android phone and an iPhone or iPad.) Two other items in this feature drop put fashion first. On phones running Android 14 or newer releases, the AI-powered Circle to Search feature can help you find where to buy the attire and accessories seen in a picture of somebody. And a new Wardrobe feature in Google Photos will catalog the clothes you're wearing in photos of you; its rollout starts this week on phones running at least Android 10 in the US, Brazil, and India. Kids under 13 with Android phones -- a larger demographic than you might expect -- get new features in Google's Personal Safety app that include showing their emergency contacts and medical information on a phone's lock screen and the option to turn on car crash detection. Google Play Books, an app that historically hasn't done much to distinguish itself from other ereader apps, is gaining a reading-companion feature that can catch you up with previous events in a book or answer questions about characters. That may seem silly, but I won't rule out its utility with such famously dense works as James Joyce's Ulysses or David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest. Finally, because no Android feature drop seems to complete without some emoji feature, this one includes yet another set of new combinations possible in the Gboard app's Emoji Kitchen tool.

Google adds Android protection against AI deepfake scam calls

Google is introducing a new Android security feature that will detect and flag phone calls in which scammers use artificial intelligence to impersonate a user's personal contacts. Called "fake call detection," the feature is rolling out globally this month to Android 12 and later devices, starting with Pixel devices, and will be enabled by default. Once activated, it works automatically when both a caller and recipient are using Phone by Google: when a contact places a call, their device sends a silent, encrypted confirmation signal to the recipient's device in real time. If that signal is not sent (indicating the call may be spoofed), the recipient's device will instead ping the contact's actual phone to verify the call's authenticity. If the contact's device confirms it is not placing a call, the recipient receives an on-screen warning to hang up immediately. "If a scammer tries to impersonate your contact, that initial confirmation signal will be missing. Your device will instantly notice this and ping your contact's actual device to double-check," Google said. "If their real device says, 'I'm not making a call right now,' you'll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately. This proactive alert helps you avoid falling victim to deepfake impersonation and call spoofing in real time." This new security feature is built on top of the Rich Communication Services (RCS) open standard and will only work on Android devices where the Phone by Google, Contacts, and Google Messages (with RCS enabled) apps are installed. According to Google, this addresses two widespread fraud tactics: scammers spoofing a familiar contact's phone number while simultaneously using AI voice-cloning technology to mimic that person's voice. Last year, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned that reported losses from impersonation scams reached $2.95 billion in 2024 alone, while INTERPOL's March 2026 Global Financial Fraud Threat Assessment flagged impersonation fraud as one of the leading threats contributing to more than $440 billion in global losses last year. "For years, people have relied on caller ID to know who is on the other end of the line, but this is no longer sufficient due to scammers' new tactics," Google added. "If your device uses a different app, you can install Phone by Google from the Play Store and set it as your default phone app to help protect yourself from fake calls."

Android will now warn you if a caller is impersonating someone you know - Engadget

Google is adding new features to Android before releasing its next major update, Android 17, later this year. Alongside a more sophisticated version of scam call detection, Android users will also reap the benefits of updates to Google Photos and Circle to Search the company teased earlier this year, and a new AI-powered recap feature in Google Play Books. Android has had the ability to warn you if you're on a scam call since 2024, but Google's new fake call detection feature takes the idea even further. As part of an update to Google's Phone app, Android users will now be warned to end a call if a caller is impersonating someone on their contact list. "When a contact calls you and you're both using Phone by Google, their device sends a silent confirmation signal in real time to your device to verify the call is legitimate and truly coming from the contact's device," Google writes in a blog explaining the new feature. "Because this digital handshake uses end-to-end encrypted Rich Communication Services (RCS) technology, it is completely private." If your Phone app doesn't receive the handshake, it knows to show you a warning so you can immediately end your call. Google says fake call detection is available on devices with Android 12 and up that use its phone app. The company also plans to make its Personal Safety app available to users under the age of 13, so they can display their medical and emergency contact information on their lock screen and quickly enable safety features like car crash detection. Outside of the realm of improving safety on Android, two key apps are getting new AI-powered skills. Google is rolling out its "wardrobe" feature to Google Photos, giving the app the ability to catalog the clothes you've worn in photos and help you virtually try them on. Google Play Books, meanwhile, can now use AI to provide contextual information about whatever you highlight and recap what you're currently reading. Google Photos wardrobe is available on select devices in the US, India and Brazil running Android 10 and up. Google Play Books' new AI insights are rolling out now to select titles in English. Google is also updating existing tools like Circle to Search and Quick Share. Like the company demoed on Samsung phones in February, Circle to Search can now identify and search for multiple items in an image instead of just one. Google's workaround to make its file sharing feature Quick Share work with Apple's AirDrop is now also available on more Android devices. And if you don't find those updates satisfying, Emoji Kitchen can smash together new emoji in Gboard, Google's software keyboard.

Android can now detect when scammers are faking calls from your contacts

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. Editor's take: Large language models and other AI technologies have increased the number of tools scammers can use to impersonate people over the phone. Google is now trying to fight this "phone slop" with a clever security feature that has nothing to do with AI. Google recently introduced a new feature designed to improve Android safety against scammers. The "industry-first" Fake Call Detection feature is compatible with most Android phones and works in the background to identify potential fake calls from criminals attempting to impersonate friends or close relatives. Google described Fake Call Detection as a significant milestone in mobile security, noting that it will improve safety for people using its own products and apps. The feature can intercept suspected fake calls from people trying to impersonate contacts, but only when both parties are using the company's official Phone app. Fake Call Detection works behind the scenes and is built on top of the Rich Communication Services (RCS) standard. When a user receives a call from a contact, the Phone app sends an "invisible" RCS signal to the contact's Phone app. The app then quickly confirms whether the call is genuinely coming from that contact. If the RCS link cannot verify the caller's identity, Android will send a second "ping" to the contact's device to confirm whether it is actually placing a call. If this second check also fails, the Phone app will display a warning about a potential fake call. The user is then advised to end the call immediately, helping to prevent scams involving criminals impersonating a contact's voice or mobile identity. Google highlights that impersonation fraud is now causing more than $2.95 billion in annual financial losses, contributing to roughly $400 billion in fraud-related losses globally. In the US alone, impersonation scams are among the most commonly reported fraud types to the FTC. Relying on a contact's mobile ID is no longer enough to prevent scam attempts. Cybercriminals can spoof contacts' phone numbers by routing calls through internet-based software, Google said. In addition, widely available AI tools can generate highly realistic deepfake audio that is difficult to distinguish from real human voices. Google will roll out its anti - deepfake Fake Call Detection feature this month, starting with Pixel devices using the company's official Phone app. In theory, all smartphones running Android 12 or later - and the corresponding Phone app - should eventually receive the feature. Google has also opted to use the open RCS standard to allow other apps and developers to adopt similar capabilities.

Google's got an easy new way to keep you safe from scam calls

Availability is getting started with Pixel phones, but will extend to other handsets running Android 12 and later. Compared to modern, secure communication systems, the ancient public telephone network has long felt like a weak link. While we still rely upon it to receive important information, it's far too easy for bad actors to take advantage of its limitations, and try and fool us by impersonating callers we trust. Thankfully, Google's been working on a solution, and shares how its new tool is going to work as part of today's June Android Drop announcements. Unlike call authentication protocols like STIR/SHAKEN that operate on a network level and require carrier support, Google's new system is much simpler to implement widely, and operates more person-to-person. Basically, when you get an incoming call from one of your known contacts, your phone will silently communicate with the remote phone over an encrypted RCS link in order to verify the caller is who you expect it to be. Even if someone's able to spoof the incoming number, or maybe even use an AI tool to fake the caller's voice, they wouldn't be able to successfully respond to that encrypted RCS authentication step. Being able to take advantage of these protections requires you to have Google Contacts and Messages installed, and both users will need to use Google's Phone app. But even with all that Google software required, this isn't destined to be a Pixel exclusive. Availability will start with Pixel devices, to be fair, but Google says that it plans to extend support to other Android 12 and later handsets. That's great to hear, because the more people out there running an easy-to-use call verification system like this, the more secure all of us can feel about knowing we're talking to the person we think we are.

Google's new Pixel feature catches AI impersonation scams before you fall for them

Timi is the news and deals reporter for Android Police, who has been reporting on technology since 2008. He has worked in tech retail and also the IT space, providing hardware and software support, which gives him a unique perspective on the tech that he covers. This allows him to effectively break down complex subjects into easy-to-read pieces that even casual readers can enjoy. Before joining Android Police, he was a news writer for XDA, where he eventually transitioned to covering deals. He also worked as an editor and reporter for Neowin, where he covered news and attended major tech events like CES. He also reviewed phones, tablets, PC products, and other devices. In addition, he also created video content for the Neowin YouTube channel. If you're a Pixel user, you have to appreciate the updates that Google delivers, offering small and large updates throughout the year to keep things fresh. Most recently, Google dropped its June 2026 Android Feature Bundle, which delivers a bunch of great new features to explore. With that said, some features are going to be better than others, but one of the more important ones to highlight is the Pixel's new ability to detect impersonation scams using fake call detection. Things are getting more complex, and Google has answers Things used to be pretty simple, but scams and fishing attempts have not gotten more complex over time, requiring big brands to step in to provide some form of protection. We know that Android already has a variety of layers to ensure that your data and privacy remain safe, and cellular providers also have a few layers to try to stop bad actors as well. With that said, Google is now stepping things up with its new feature to help protect against impersonations. This is part of the June 2026 Android Feature Bundle, which is now rolling out to compatible Pixel phones. We've all been there before. We see a number we don't know, and we simply don't pick it up because we assume it's something harmful. But what if you get a call from a number you think you know, like a caller ID that identifies as a family member or close friend? Naturally, you pick up the call, and the person on the other end sounds just like what you'd expect. The only problem is that this person isn't who you think they are, and it's a clever person or organization that's leveraging AI for a bad purpose. While this might sound like something from the future, it's actually a problem that's happening now. Google is attempting to combat this by adding a feature that will look for a digital handshake in its Phone by Google app. If it is not able to confirm this with the other user, then it will alert you that this call could be a possible scam. The great part about this is that this feature will actually ping the true contact's device to see whether there's an outgoing call to ensure it's not getting things wrong. This feature is rolling out now, so you'll want to keep an eye out for it. Once again, it's part of Google's June 2026 Android Feature Bundle, which also comes with other great features as well.

Google Phone app rolling out Android fake call detection that uses RCS

Phone by Google wants to combat the "growing threat of impersonation scams" and protect Android users against "sophisticated, AI-powered deepfake attacks" with fake call detection. June Android Drop: Quick Share AirDrop expansion, AI in Play Books, & more, Android 17 coming soon Imagine your phone rings. The caller ID says "Mom." You answer, and it sounds exactly like her; she has the same tone, the same voice. However, the person on the other end isn't your mom -- it's a scammer using AI tools to impersonate her and demand money from you for a fake emergency. Fake call detection requires that both parties are on Android and use the Phone by Google app, while Google Messages and Google Contacts also have to be installed. When a contact calls, their phone "sends a silent confirmation signal in real time to your device to verify the call is legitimate and truly coming from the contact's device." This digital handshake uses end-to-end encrypted RCS (Rich Communication Services). If you're being scammed by an impersonator, your phone will notice that the "initial confirmation signal will be missing," and ping the contact's real device to double-check. If their real device says, "I'm not making a call right now," you'll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately. This feature will be available globally on Android 12+ phones starting with Pixel devices this month. Fake call detection is enabled by default but can be turned off at any time. Google says it's "possible for other apps and device manufacturers to adopt this technology" given the RCS underpinnings.

Android will now warn you if someone is using AI to fake your contact's voice on a call

Google's fake call detection is the first time a phone platform has built a real-time cryptographic defense against AI voice cloning scams. Yes, advancements in AI help people from different walks of life, but they have some cons. One of the most exploited con has been AI voice cloning. Over the years, it has reached the point where most people can no longer tell a deepfake voice from a real one. Scammers already know this, and they've been spoofing users' contacts, cloning their voice, and committing financial frauds for quite some time. Android's new fake call detection is designed to stop that exact scenario before it costs you. How does fake call detection actually work? Fake call detection is an industry-first feature. It identifies when a caller is not who they claim to be, even when the caller ID looks legitimate and the caller's voice sounds familiar. Recommended Videos Without any action required from you, the feature operates silently in the background. When a contact calls you, and both of you are using Google's Phone app, the caller's device sends an encrypted confirmation signal to your device, functioning like a digital handshake, verifying that the call is coming from that person's phone. This handshake is built on end-to-end encrypted RCS technology; the verification is completely private. When a scammer spoofs your contact's number, the signal will be absent, and your device immediately pings your contact's actual phone to check whether they are making a call. Does the feature work for all Android phones? When their real device confirms it is not making a call, a warning appears on your screen, telling you it's a fake call and you should immediately hang up. The entire process happens instantly, before the scammer has had a chance to manipulate you. Fake call detection is enabled by default. It is rolling out globally in Phone by Google this month, starting with Pixel devices, running on Android 12 and above. The only catch is that both the caller and the recipient must be using Phone app and the recipient's device also needs RCS enabled in Google Messages.

How Android helps keep you safe from impersonation scams with fake call detection

Imagine your phone rings. The caller ID says "Mom." You answer, and it sounds exactly like her; she has the same tone, the same voice. However, the person on the other end isn't your mom -- it's a scammer using AI tools to impersonate her and demand money from you for a fake emergency. To help protect you from the growing threat of impersonation scams, Android is introducing fake call detection, an industry-first protection that can detect and flag suspected spoofed calls when your contact and you are both using Phone by Google. This builds on our recent launch of verified financial calls, which warns you if a scammer is attempting to impersonate your financial institution. Marking a major milestone in mobile security, fake call detection helps protect you, your family and friends by identifying when a caller isn't who they claim to be, giving you an extra layer of defense against sophisticated AI-voice cloning scams, also called deepfake attacks, of your contacts.

Your Android Phone Now Detects Fake Calls Impersonating People

Being worried about a future filled with AI doesn't mean you an alarmist. While AI certainly has its uses, it likely has as many or more downsides if we step back and look at the bigger picture of it all. One of those downsides would be ways for criminals or scam artists to use AI in order to pull off the crimes they so love to commit. Today, Google announced that its Phone by Google app has new tech in place that could stop potential AI scams that happen via phone calls. Since AI can be used to spoof or clone a person's voice, you can probably imagine that a faked call using a voice that sounds like yours or someone you know could be bad. The amounts of information that could be abstracted from a call where one party doesn't realize they are talking to a scam artist could be huge. To protect against this, Google's fake call detection works when a call happens from a number you have as a contact that can't be verified by that person's phone. Or think about it a different way. If a person you know calls you using the Google Phone app, and you also use the Google Phone app, there is a behind-the-scenes confirmation that you are both calling each other from your phones. If a scammer were to spoof their number and call you, that little verification or handshake from your friend's phone would be missing and the call would then alert you that this might not be the person you thought it was. Google is doing this through a digital handshake that uses end-to-end encrypted RCS technology. Yes, that's the same RCS that we now use to text message everyone we know. Oh, and if you don't like the idea of this digital handshake, you can disable this feature at any time (instructions). This new fake call detection will land on Pixel phones first later this month and then rollout globally.

Google Fake Call Detection Arrives Just as Phone Scams Get Scary Good

Phone scammers have never exactly been subtle. Fake prize wins, urgent calls from "your bank," someone pretending to be a government official threatening you with arrest. We've seen it all. But the old tricks were at least somewhat easy to spot if you knew what to look for. AI voice cloning is changing that. Scammers can now clone someone's voice from just a few seconds of audio, spoof their phone number, and call you sounding exactly like your mum, your boss, or your bank manager. The number looks right. The voice sounds right. And before you know it, you've handed over your password or wired money to someone you've never met. Google Fake Call Detection is Android's answer to that. Rolling out now as part of the June Android Feature Drop, the feature lives inside Phone by Google and works automatically in the background on Android 12 and later devices. Google describes it as a silent "digital handshake" between two devices. When a contact calls you and you're both using Phone by Google, their device sends an encrypted RCS signal to yours confirming the call is genuinely coming from them. If that signal doesn't show up, you get an on-screen warning, the contact's photo disappears, and their name gets swapped out for "Unknown caller" in your call log. It's on by default, so there's nothing to set up. What It Does and What It Doesn't The obvious caveat is that both you and the caller need to be using Phone by Google for the verification to kick in. If your contact is on an iPhone or a device running a different dialer, there's no handshake to check. So it won't catch every spoofed call, and scammers targeting you from outside that bubble won't trigger a warning. That said, Google built this on RCS, an open standard, specifically so other app makers and device manufacturers can adopt the same technology. Phone by Google is also already the default dialer on the majority of Android devices, which gives it a decent starting footprint. We've seen Google steadily build out its scam defences over the past couple of years, and Samsung has been doing similar work on its own end. Fake Call Detection feels like a natural next step in that direction. Will it stop every AI-powered scam call? No. But it's free, it's on by default, and it asks nothing of you. For a threat that's only going to get harder to spot, that's a reasonable place to start.

Android can now identify AI deepfake scam calls impersonating loved ones

Google has announced a new call screening feature for Android phones, which gives recipients a heads up if a scammer is attempting to impersonate a person they know. The new tool is part of the Phone app and relies on RCS technology to recognise the device the caller is using. The handshake between your device and the callers verifies the original device. If the phone detects an impersonator, the recipient will get a warning so they can hang up quick sharpish. It'll be available on phones running Android 12 and upwards You'll both need to be using Phone by Google for it to work, but it sounds like a neat way to combat the growing issue of scammers using AI voice cloning to trick people into thinking their friends and family are the ones making the call. In a blog post describing the new feature, Google says: "When a contact calls you and you're both using Phone by Google, their device sends a silent confirmation signal in real time to your device to verify the call is legitimate and truly coming from the contact's device," Google writes in a blog explaining the new feature. "Because this digital handshake uses end-to-end encrypted Rich Communication Services (RCS) technology, it is completely private. "If a scammer tries to impersonate your contact, that initial confirmation signal will be missing. Your device will instantly notice this and ping your contact's actual device to double-check. If their real device says, "I'm not making a call right now," you'll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately. This proactive alert helps you avoid falling victim to deepfake impersonation and call spoofing in real time. You can disable this feature at any time in the Phone by Google app settings." Google already has pretty good scam call detection technology for the regular kind of BS most of us get bombarded with multiple times per day, as well as the brilliant call screening service that deals with the time-wasters and scammers in the background so we don't have to. However, there's a growing threat brought on by the use of advanced AI Deepfake technology. Indeed Interpol reckons impersonation fraud is responsible for around $400 billion in global losses. Scammers are able to spoof the phone number of your trusted contact without the need for the device itself, while the AI voice cloning technology does the rest.

Android takes on spoofers with fake call detection feature

This content has been selected, created and edited by the Finextra editorial team based upon its relevance and interest to our community. According to Interpol, impersonation fraud is one of the leading contributors to over $400 billion in global losses. In the US, Impersonation scams are also among the top reported frauds to the FTC, with losses totalling $2.95 billion in 2024. With many people refusing to pick up calls from unknown numbers, scammers are shifting strategies and routing calls through internet-based software to spoof the numbers of victims' contacts. Then they use AI deepfake technology to sound exactly like an authority figure, family member, or employer. The new Android feature works behind the scenes when a contact calls (but only if both ends are using Phone by Google), sending a silent confirmation signal in real time to the user's device to verify the call is legitimate and truly coming from the contact's device. If a scammer is impersonating the contact, that initial confirmation signal will be missing. The user's device will instantly notice this and ping the contact's actual device to double-check. If their real device says, "I'm not making a call right now," the user gets a warning on their screen advising them to hang up immediately. Last month Android teamed up with a number of financial institutions - including Revolut and Nubank - on another protection feature that automatically ends phone calls from spoofed numbers impersonating participating financial apps. If a user has a participating bank or financial institution's app installed and have signed in, Android works quietly in the background to verify incoming calls. When the user receives a call that appears to be from their bank, Android asks the app for confirmation to see if they are actually calling them. If the app confirms that no phone call is being made, the system ends the call.

Google to Use RCS to Fight AI Voice Scams on Android

Google's new fake call detection feature uses encrypted RCS signals to verify whether a call is genuinely coming from a trusted contact, addressing a growing threat from AI-powered impersonation scams. * Make Telecom Talk My Trusted Source Artificial intelligence is making many digital experiences more powerful, but it is also creating new challenges. One of the fastest-growing concerns is the rise of AI-generated voice scams, where fraudsters use voice cloning technology to impersonate family members, friends, colleagues, or authority figures in an attempt to trick victims into sending money or sharing sensitive information. Google believes it may have found a way to tackle this growing problem on Android. The company is rolling out a new fake call detection feature through the Phone by Google app that aims to identify impersonation scams by verifying whether a call is actually coming from a trusted contact's device. The approach is notable because it relies on Rich Communication Services (RCS), a technology that has traditionally been associated with messaging rather than voice security. AI Voice Scams Are Becoming More Sophisticated Voice cloning tools have become more accessible in recent years, allowing scammers to generate convincing audio that can sound remarkably similar to a real person. Combined with caller ID spoofing, these tools can create highly believable scams. A user might receive a call that appears to come from a family member or friend. The voice may sound authentic, and the caller may claim to be in an emergency situation requiring immediate financial assistance. In many cases, victims have little reason to suspect that the call is fraudulent.

Google targets costly problem for Android users

Americans are losing more money to scams, and fraudsters are getting better at making their messages look and sound familiar. In 2025, the Federal Trade Commission received 3 million fraud reports from consumers, who reported $15.9 billion in losses. That was a sharp increase from the previous year, when consumers submitted 2.6 million fraud reports and reported losses of more than $12 billion. The most frequently reported fraud category was imposter scams, according to the FTC. Consumers filed more than 1 million reports about that type of fraud, totaling more than $3.5 billion in losses. To address this frequent issue, Google has developed a solution. Google says Android can flag fake calls from contacts Google is now adding a new Android feature aimed at one of the more unsettling versions of that problem: calls that appear to come from people users already know. The company said Android is introducing fake call detection, a tool designed to warn users when a scammer may be spoofing one of their contacts and using artificial intelligence to impersonate that person's voice. The feature comes as caller ID becomes less dependable for consumers trying to decide whether to pick up the phone. For years, many people treated unknown numbers as suspicious and familiar names as safer. But scammers are increasingly trying to get around that by making calls appear to come from relatives, friends, employers, or other trusted contacts. That shift matters because phones are still central to everyday life. The Pew Research Center said 98% of U.S. adults own a cellphone, and 91% own a smartphone. Google said Android's fake call detection is meant to protect users from scammers who combine two tactics: spoofing a phone number and using AI-generated audio to sound like someone the user knows. A spoofed call can make the caller ID show a familiar number even though the call is not actually coming from that person. Voice-cloning tools can make the deception more convincing by making the caller sound like a family member, authority figure, employer, or other trusted person. Google described the new feature as a kind of private verification between devices. The feature is rolling out globally this month in Phone by Google to Android 12 and newer devices, starting with Pixel devices. Google said it requires Phone by Google, Contacts, and Google Messages to be installed, along with RCS capability in Google Messages. Both the caller and the recipient must use the Phone by Google app. BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash How does Phone by Google work? When a person receives a call from a contact who is also using the Phone by Google app, the caller's device can send a silent confirmation signal to the recipient's device in real time. That signal is meant to verify that the call is actually coming from the contact's device. If that confirmation signal is missing, the recipient's device can check with the contact's real device. If that device says it is not making a call, the recipient will see an on-screen warning to hang up. Google said the process uses end-to-end encrypted Rich Communication Services technology and works automatically in the background. The company said fake call detection is on by default, though users can turn it off in the Phone by Google app settings. That means the protection will not apply to every phone call or to every Android user by default right away. But it shows how phone makers are trying to respond as scams become more personal and harder to identify. Scammers are reaching consumers across digital channels The new Android feature is focused on calls, but the broader scam problem is not limited to phones. The FTC said social media was the costliest fraud contact method in 2025. Nearly 30% of people who reported losing money to a scam said the scam started on social media, with reported losses reaching $2.1 billion. The FTC said social media gives scammers easy access to large numbers of people and allows them to use tools similar to those used by legitimate businesses. Scammers can buy ads, target users by age or interests, exploit what people post publicly, or hack accounts to make a message appear to come from someone a person trusts. That is part of the same consumer problem Google is trying to address with fake call detection. Scams increasingly start from places that feel familiar. A person may see a post from what appears to be a known account, receive a message from a hacked profile, or answer a phone call that appears to come from someone in their contacts. For most age groups, the FTC said social media scams caused the highest reported losses among contact methods. But the agency said consumers 80 and older were an exception. For that group, phone calls ranked first, followed by social media. That makes phone-based protection especially important for older consumers, who may still be heavily targeted through calls. Google's update targets a basic consumer habit For Android users, the feature is meant to change what happens in the few seconds after a familiar name appears on the screen. The decision to answer a call often happens quickly. A person may ignore an unknown number, but pick up when the caller ID shows a parent, child, spouse, workplace, or close friend. Scammers are trying to exploit that trust. Google's fake call detection does not tell users that every familiar call is safe. Instead, it adds another signal when something appears wrong. The warning could be especially important in emergency-style scams, where fraudsters try to pressure victims into sending money quickly. Those scams often rely on panic, urgency, and trust. A call that sounds like a relative in trouble can make a person act before checking whether the story is real. Google's feature is also another sign that smartphone security is moving beyond passwords, spam filters, and blocked numbers. As AI makes impersonation easier, phone platforms are being pushed to verify not just whether a message or call came through, but whether the person behind it is actually who they claim to be. That matters because smartphones are now one of the main places where consumers manage money, communicate with family, shop, work, and receive alerts from banks or businesses. And for Android users, the latest update may serve as a much-needed respite from having to continuously screen their phones for scams. The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc. This story was originally published June 6, 2026 at 2:03 PM.

Google Android Fake Call Detection Feature Targets AI Voice Scams

You can access the blog post here. Google has announced a new fake call detection feature for Android that aims to identify scam calls where fraudsters use AI-generated voices and spoofed phone numbers to impersonate a user's contacts. Rising threat of impersonation scams: The feature, which is rolling out this month in the Phone by Google app on Android 12 and newer devices, checks whether a call claiming to be from a saved contact actually originates from that person's device. If the verification fails, Android displays a warning that the caller may be impersonating the contact. The move comes amid growing concerns over impersonation scams. According to INTERPOL's March 2026 Global Financial Fraud Threat Assessment, impersonation fraud is among the leading causes of global losses exceeding $400 billion. The US Federal Trade Commission also reported $2.95 billion in losses from impersonation scams in 2024. How scammers operate: Google said scammers increasingly combine phone number spoofing with AI voice-cloning tools to mimic family members, employers or authority figures. The company cited expert assessments indicating that modern audio deepfakes are now difficult for most people to distinguish from real voices. How the verification system works: The new system uses a verification process between devices via end-to-end encrypted Rich Communication Services (RCS). When both parties use Google's Phone app, the caller's device sends a silent verification signal during the call. If that signal is missing and the contact's device confirms it is not placing the call, the recipient receives an alert advising caution. Rollout and availability: The feature is enabled by default but can be disabled in the app settings. Google said it will first roll out on Pixel devices before expanding to other Android phones that use Phone by Google as their default calling app. Users of other dialer apps can install Phone by Google separately. The company has also built the system on the open RCS standard, allowing other app developers and device makers to adopt similar protections.

Google wants to protect you from fake calls with this new feature, here is how it works

It is available on Pixel phones and works automatically in the background. Fake call scams have been a long-standing problem, and with the inception of AI, the number of cases has only spiked. Scammers are now using AI to clone the voices of people you know and make fake calls to you asking you to send money or share personal details. Google has launched a new feature for Android phones that can detect fake calls, aimed at stopping this. As per the company, the feature can tell when someone is pretending to be a contact you trust and warns you before any harm is done. The feature runs quietly in the background without any extra steps from you. The fake call detection feature by Google will only be available on Pixel devices for now. Your Pixel device must be running on Android 12 or a newer version. You don't need to juggle settings to enable the feature, as it would be active by default. However, if you don't want to use the feature anymore, then you can disable it in the settings. Google has also clarified that the feature will only work if both the caller and the receiver are using Pixel devices. Not only that, but as per the Mountain View-based tech giant, the verification process is private and protected through end-to-end encryption. How does fake call detection work? Google explained that when a person makes a call, their smartphone will send a silent verification signal to the recipient's phone. This signal acts as proof that the call is genuinely coming from that known contact's device. Furthermore, if a scammer spoofs the contact's phone number, the verification signal will not be present. The receiving device will still try to establish a contact with the caller's device to confirm whether the device is actually being used to make a phone call. If the contact's device confirms that no call is in progress, Android will display a warning message. The process is done in the background even after you receive a call. Moreover, if the incoming call that you received is spoofed, then your device will show an alert that will advise you to end the call immediately. This can help you avoid potential fraud. Benefits The fake call detection feature comes with certain benefits, like the following: