Google's new AI‑powered theft detection lock to secure smartphones

Google is tackling daring smartphone thefts by developing new security features to complicate thieves’ efforts. One such feature is the AI-based Theft Detection Lock.

Nowadays, losing a phone means more than just losing an expensive gadget; it equates to losing access to crucial data. Our smartphones contain bank apps, home monitoring systems, emails, and applications for controlling home networks and devices. The impact of losing a phone to a thief, especially one who brazenly grabs it from our hands on the street, can be profoundly severe.

Theft involving electric bicycles or motorcycles has become rampant in Western European cities. Google plans to combat this issue by implementing new features into the Android operating system. These features were unveiled at the Google I/O 2024 conference and are slated to be released later in the year.

The centrepiece of these innovations is a theft detection lock system powered by artificial intelligence. This system is designed to detect sudden, unusual movements indicative of theft, such as the phone being snatched from the hand and quickly moved in the opposite direction. Upon detecting such behaviour, the smartphone automatically locks itself, blocking the thief’s access to the user's data.