Google I/O 2021 Developer Conference: Android 12 New Privacy Features

At the Google I/O 2021 Developer Conference held on May 18, Google officially announced the most personalized Android system in history-Android 12, which introduced many new privacy features.

While these privacy features are very similar to those in iOS, they are improved upon in many ways.

Camera and microphone access notifications

When an app accesses the camera or microphone, the user will receive a notification. However, the notification is located at the top of the screen and is very small, just reminding the user that the camera or microphone is in use.

Head and microphone access notifications

The implementation of camera and microphone access notifications is very similar to Apple's iOS system. In iOS, green and orange dots are used. Google has added independent buttons to turn off the app's access to the microphone and camera, giving users better control over privacy.

Location Information

Another privacy feature introduced in Android 12 is access to location information. Similar to the iPhone, in the Android 12 system, users can grant APPs permission to access non-precise location data.

Approximate location data

Clipboard read notification

When the app reads data from the clipboard that is not generated by the app, the user will also receive a notification. This feature focuses on apps that steal user clipboard information.

Other privacy features

Compared to the iOS system, Android 12 also introduces many new privacy features that do not exist in iOS. For example, the locked folder in Google Photos allows users to have space to save private photos.

In Android 12 beta 2, a privacy timeline function is also introduced, through which users can view the apps that have accessed location information, microphone, and camera in the past 24 hours. With this function, users can better manage privacy-related permissions.

This article is translated from:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/android-12-new-privacy-features-will-already-be-familiar-to-iphone-users-but-google-may-have-implemented-them-better/