Android 15 Feature to Prevent Users From Sharing Sensitive Details While Screen Sharing in Development: Report

Sharing your screen while staying safe from hackers could get a lot easier with Android 15.

Written by David Delima | Updated: 24 April 2024 15:08 IST

Android 15 Feature to Prevent Users From Sharing Sensitive Details While Screen Sharing in Development: Report

Photo Credit: Google

Android 15 is expected to arrive with several security and privacy features

Highlights

Android 15 could introduce new privacy protections for screen sharing
Sensitive fields and notifications could be obscured on Android 15
Google is yet to enable this feature on the latest Android 15 beta

Android 15 could arrive with a powerful new privacy feature that could help prevent users from leaking their personal information while sharing their screen, according to a report. The next version of Google's smartphone operating system — expected to arrive in the second half of 2024 — might obscure certain parts of the screen, such as password fields or sensitive notifications, from being displayed when screen sharing is enabled. Google might also allow users to disable these protections on their Android smartphone.

As per an Android Police report, the latest Android 15 Beta 1.1 release contains a new toggle in the Developer options menu titled Disable screen share protections. The description for the toggle explains that the setting will disable system protections for "sensitive app content" when a user shares their screen in the future. Unfortunately, the feature is yet to be enabled by Google on the latest Android 15 beta.

The publication also spotted a new API on the latest Android 15 beta release that allows apps with custom virtual views, WebView, and Jetpack Compose to access a sensitive content protection feature. The feature could reportedly allow the operating system to block specific fields that show sensitive information, such as passwords or email addresses.

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It's currently unclear how phones running on Android 15 will determine what parts of the screen to obscure during a screen sharing session. However, the feature could also protect users from scammers who convince users to share their screens to gain access to their passwords, one-time passwords (OTPs), or two-factor authentication codes.

The feature is reportedly disabled on Android 15 Beta 1.1, which means it cannot be tested by users who have flashed the first public beta on their Pixel phones. It could either be enabled on Android 15 Beta 2, or could be unveiled by the company at Google I/O in May before it is rolled out to beta testers, according to the report.

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Further reading: Android 15, Android 15 beta, Android 15 features, Screen sharing, Android, Google

David Delima

Email David Delima

As a writer on technology with Gadgets 360, David Delima is interested in open-source technology, cybersecurity, consumer privacy, and loves to read and write about how the Internet works. David can be contacted via email at DavidD@ndtv.com, on Twitter at @DxDavey, and Mastodon at mstdn.social/@delima. More