Google's Built-in AI Defenses On Android Now Block 10 Billion ...

Google on Thursday revealed that the scam defenses built into Android safeguard users around the world from more than 10 billion suspected malicious calls and messages every month.

The tech giant also said it has blocked over 100 million suspicious numbers from using Rich Communication Services (RCS), an evolution of the SMS protocol, thereby preventing scams before they could even be sent.

In recent years, the company has adopted various safeguards to combat phone call scams and automatically filter known spam using on-device artificial intelligence and move them automatically to the "spam & blocked" folder in the Google Messages app for Android.

Earlier this month, Google also globally rolled out safer links in Google Messages, warning users when they attempt to click on any URLs in a message flagged as spam and step them visiting the potentially harmful website, unless the message is marked as "not spam."

Google said its analysis of user-submitted reports in August 2025 found employment fraud to be the most prevalent scam category, where individuals searching for work are lured with fake opportunities in order to steal their personal and financial information.

Another prominent category relates to financially-motivated scams that revolve around bogus unpaid bills, subscriptions, and fees, as well as fraudulent investment schemes. Also observed to a lesser extent are scams related to package deliveries, government agency impersonation, romance, and technical support scams.

In an interesting twist, Google said it has increasingly witnessed scam messages arrive in the form of a group chat with a number of potential victims, as opposed to sending them a direct message.

"This shift may have happened because group messages can feel less suspicious to recipients, particularly when a scammer includes a fellow scammer in the group to validate the initial message and make it appear to be a legitimate conversation," Google said.

The company's analysis also found that the malicious messages stick to a "distinct daily and weekly schedule," with the activity commencing around 5 a.m. PT in the U.S., before peaking between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. PT. The highest volume of fraudulent messages is typically sent on Mondays, coinciding with the start of the workday, when recipients are likely to be the busiest and less wary of incoming messages.

Some of the common aspects that tie these scams together are that they begin with a "Spray and Pray" approach by casting a wi

Source: The Hacker News