Google’s AI-Backed Anti-theft Feature for Android Phones Rolling out Soon in Brazil

Google introduced the ''Theft Detection Lock'' feature for Android phones at its I/O 2024 event, which concluded last month. Now, the tech giant has announced that Brazil will be the first country to get this feature, which uses AI to identify when a smartphone has been stolen.

There will be three types of locks during its initial testing phase. The first will be the Automatic AI-powered screen lock which will use AI capabilities to detect common movements associated with theft and block the screen.

The second Remote lock feature will allow users to lock their phone's screen remotely by entering the phone number and completing a security challenge from another device. Then the Offline Device Lock feature will automatically lock the screen if the stolen smartphone is without internet access for long periods.

The feature will be available in Brazil for Android phones version 10 or higher starting in July. The tech giant also said this feature will released to users from other countries gradually this year.

Google's Theft Detection Lock is part of a broader effort to keep users' data safe before, during and after a theft attempt. Google has also improved Android's factory reset protection, making it more difficult for thieves to reset and resell stolen devices. With this upgrade, if a thief forces a reset of the stolen device, they're not able to set it up again without knowing the device or Google account credentials.

Smartphone theft has become a common ordeal across the world, while Google has implemented AI to lock a stolen phone, Apple also introduced several new anti-theft features that render a stolen iPhone useless, by locking out the device and also making it difficult to remove an Apple ID from the decide.