Source URL: https://it.slashdot.org/story/25/02/03/040259/google-stops-malicious-apps-with-ai-powered-threat-detection-and-continuous-scanning?utm_source=rss1.0mainlinkanon&utm_medium=feed
Source: Slashdot
Title: Google Stops Malicious Apps With ‘AI-Powered Threat Detection’ and Continuous Scanning
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AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: Google’s security initiatives for Android and Google Play focus on proactively protecting users from harmful apps through advanced AI-driven threat detection, strict privacy policies, and enhanced developer requirements. In 2024, significant achievements include the identification of millions of potentially harmful applications and the establishment of enhanced fraud protection pilots across multiple regions to combat app installation risks.
Detailed Description: Google’s recent update emphasizes its proactive approach to user safety on Android and Google Play, highlighting an array of significant security measures that leverage AI technologies. Key points from the update include:
– **Use of Advanced AI**: Google has integrated advanced AI into its security systems to enhance the detection of malware, significantly improving the ability to block malicious apps before they reach users.
– **Proactive Policies and Best Practices**:
– Yearly investment in security to combat bad actors, including strong privacy policies and industry partnerships.
– Requiring apps to provide more transparency about user data handling through new developer requirements introduced in 2024.
– **Enhanced Automated Threat Detection**:
– Over 92% of human reviews for harmful apps are AI-assisted, allowing for quicker interventions against harmful apps.
– Google Play Protect employs real-time scanning to counter emerging threats, processing over 200 billion app scans daily, with specific focus on polymorphic malware.
– **User Protection Initiatives**:
– Identification of over 13 million new malicious apps from outside Google Play, emphasizing the risks associated with sideloading.
– Launch of enhanced fraud protection pilots in various regions, blocking high-risk installation attempts and targeting sensitive permissions often abused in financial fraud.
– **User Engagement and Ongoing Improvements**:
– Introduction of notification reminders in Chrome to encourage users to re-enable Google Play Protect.
– Implementation of security measures to prevent fraudsters from manipulating users into disabling critical protection during calls.
Overall, Google’s comprehensive security strategy for Android and Google Play not only focuses on preventing harmful applications but also actively engages users in their safety, providing insights and tools that bolster both user and developer compliance with security standards. This approach highlights the significance of adaptive security measures within expansive ecosystems like Android, catering to the growing threat landscape and the necessity for ongoing vigilance against emerging cybersecurity risks.