Google Rolls Out Fake Call Detection Globally as Impersonation Scams Drove $400 Billion in Losses
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 7
Google Rolls Out Fake Call Detection Globally as Impersonation Scams Drove $400 Billion in Losses
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 7
Summary
Phone by Google is rolling out fake call detection worldwide this month, starting on Pixel devices, to warn Android users when a call appearing to come from a saved contact may be spoofed.
The feature works on Android 12 and newer phones using Phone by Google, Contacts, Google Messages and RCS; it checks for a silent confirmation from the caller’s device and flags the call if that signal is missing.
Its biggest limitation is reach: both parties must use Phone by Google, so it may not protect calls from businesses, unknown numbers or contacts on unsupported devices.
Google is adding the safeguard as impersonation fraud has become a major scam vector, with INTERPOL citing more than $400 billion in global losses and the FTC reporting $2.95 billion in U.S. impersonation-scam losses in 2024.