Spam and scam calls are getting worse and worse. While tech companies keep working to fight against these calls, the scammers are getting smarter and smarter. Google, however, is introducing a new feature that should help combat spoofed calls.
According to Google, a lot of people are getting calls that say they are from someone in your contacts, like your Mom, and when you answer the phone, it sounds like her. But in reality, it’s not. I haven’t had this happen to me yet, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. This is all being done with AI tools to impersonate other people. Usually, it’s to get money from you for a fake emergency.
Google also cites INTERPOL’s March 2026 Global Financial Fraud Threat Assessment, which identifies impersonation fraud as one of the leading contributors to over $400 billion in global losses. With it being among the top reported frauds to the FTC, costing Americans $2.95 billion in 2024. And this is only going to grow.
Many of us refuse to pick up the phone these days for numbers we don’t know. So, scammers are shifting strategies and now spoofing the phone number, routing calls through internet-based software to make it appear as though the call is originating from a familiar, trusted contact. They also use easily accessible AI deepfake technology to sound exactly like an authority figure. Like a family member or an employer.
Here’s how Android’s Fake Call Detection works
Along with today’s announcement of Fake Call Detection, Google is also explaining how this is going to work.
The feature will be on by default, but you will need to use the Phone by Google app, which might not be the default dialer on your phone. Google says you can think of it as a “digital handshake between devices”. So when a contact calls you and you’re both using the Phone by Google app, their device sends a silent confirmation signal in real time to your device to verify the call is legit and truly coming from the contact’s device. This digital handshake is using end-to-end encrypted RCS technology; the whole thing is private.
If a scammer is trying to impersonate someone, that initial confirmation signal will be missing. And your device will instantly notice that and ping your contact’s actual device to double-check. So if the real device says “I’m not making a call right now,” you’ll get a warning on your screen advising you to hang up immediately.
This is designed to help you avoid falling victim to deepfake impersonation and call spoofing in real time.
You can opt to disable this feature, but given how prevalent these calls are right now. It’s a good idea to keep it on.
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