Google's Chrome browser has long provided extensive privacy and security features. For instance, Enhanced Safe Browsing was first introduced in 2020 to defend users against harmful websites and downloads through real-time threat detection.
In 2023, Google transitioned this feature from an opt-in service to a standard protocol to better protect users from phishing attacks, harmful extensions, and dangerous downloads. Recently, the company has begun to implement its Gemini Nano AI technology to help safeguard smartphone users from online scams, particularly those disguised as tech security alerts on websites.
How does it provide protection?
Scam websites often deploy recognizable techniques to trick users into believing they are facing a security threat. Gemini Nano has been trained to spot these deceptive practices. When a website exhibits suspicious activity, the AI promptly identifies the underlying motive behind the alert and communicates it with the Safe Browsing system.
If a webpage is identified as potentially harmful and suggests a digital scam, users will receive a notification alert from the browser. In the future, Google intends to use this system to address scams related to package tracking and tolls as well.
Such notifications will display the name of the website along with a warning about its dubious nature. Users will have the option to unsubscribe easily or whitelist the site if the Chrome security feature mistakenly flags it.
Users can directly unsubscribe via the notification banner or opt to view the blocked content. This feature is initially set to launch on Android devices later this year, although Google has not disclosed specific hardware or software requirements.
“Initially, this feature will be exclusive to Android as most notifications are sent to mobile devices,” the company states. However, Google is also considering extending these new AI-driven security features to other platforms.
What is its significance?
Tech support scams, where websites display alert messages warning users about alleged viruses on their devices, have become unfortunately common. Google explains that these fraudulent sites can present differently to users, making it vital to evaluate the threats exactly as they appear. This need underscores the role of AI in enhancing security.
Historically, Google has relied on a system that performs real-time checks against a list of blocked content, along with sharing a small amount of browsing data for security measures. The introduction of Gemini Nano innovates this process with on-device scanning, a major advantage for users.
“We have found that the average malicious site is active for less than 10 minutes, so on-device protection enables us to identify and mitigate attacks that haven’t been indexed yet,” a Google security update states. This method allows for the analysis of threats as they emerge before an average smartphone user encounters them.
