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Google Security Feature Will Reset App Permission On All Android Devices

App Permissions

Many Android apps ask for a number of permissions when they are installed. Then the apps are idle on the phone and can become a real security risk over time. Google is now taking action against it.

This security extra is called “Permission Auto-Reset” and is a standard for Android 11. But now Google has announced that older versions should also benefit from it – that is, Google will reset the app permissions on millions of smartphones. Google has now specifically announced that support for the recently launched privacy protection function on all devices with older Android versions from version 6.0 to the current one will be ported back later this year.

And that’s the plan: the auto-reset permissions feature was introduced with Android 11. It aims to better protect user privacy by automatically removing runtime permissions for apps that have not been used for months.

Dangerous term permissions

Runtime authorizations are often referred to as dangerous authorizations because they are given once and permanently. This can lead to problems, especially in the case in which attackers infiltrate third-party apps and now use the released rights for their own purposes. Users often don’t think about it when apps remain unused on their devices for months, if not years, and they have been granted unnecessary releases.

As soon as Google starts the security feature for older Android devices, the authorizations are automatically stopped. The plan will start at the end of the year: “From December 2021 we will expand this to billions of other devices. This function will be available on devices with Google Play services, running Android 6.0 (API level 23) or higher, “explained Google. Some people also use VPN for Android for an extra security layer, how VPNs would behave on the new android system is not clear yet.

On devices that have not yet installed Android 11, users can currently still go to the page with the settings for the automatic reset and for Activate / deactivate certain apps. “A few weeks after the start of the function on a device, the system will begin to automatically reset the permissions of unused apps.”

According to Google, the distribution of the security function will take some time, but it is assumed It is assumed that the update will be completed by the second quarter of 2022 and that all unnecessary runtime authorizations have been automatically removed.