Tag: private space

Android 15 Beta 2 With Private Space, Advanced Anti-Theft Protection and More Released

Android 15 Beta 2 was announced at Google I/O 2024 on Wednesday, a day after the company’s annual developer conference kicked off. The latest beta version of its next major operating system (OS) update is now available to download on Google Pixel smartphones and is coming to select smartphones over the coming weeks. This year, Google is focussing on adding new security and privacy features to Android 15, and the latest beta version contains powerful new features that are available to beta testers.

During a Google I/O developer session, the company showed off its first security and privacy-oriented feature coming to smartphones with Android 15 — Private Space. It will allow users to hide certain apps (such a banking, finance, dating, or social media apps) on their smartphone in a secure location. Apps in the Private Space can be updated via a separate Play Store app and will also have access to their own storage area not accessible to other apps on the phone.

Google says that the Private Space feature is located in the default app drawer on Android 15. Users can scroll down to the end of the list of apps to reveal the secured app. This segregated application list can optionally be protected by a separate passcode — or using a biometric lock — while allowing them to completely hide its existence. 

With Android 15, Google is also upgrading its anti-theft protections, making it more difficult for thieves to use a stolen phone that has been reset, without the previously used Google account credentials. Android 15 will also ask users for their biometrics when attempting to increase the screen timeout, accessing passkeys, or disable Find My Device.

Another powerful anti-theft feature coming to Android 15 is “Theft Detection Lock”, or the ability to lock a smartphone when an “abrupt motion that could indicate theft” has been detected. Meanwhile, “Offline Device Lock” will also automatically lock itself if a user turns off access to the internet — something a thief might do after stealing a smartphone.

Remote Lock will let users send a command using a different number (when their handset is stolen) to lock and/ or wipe their phone remotely without logging on to Find My Device. Theft Detection Lock, Remote Lock, and Offline Device Lock are aimed at disincentivising smartphone theft and will arrive later this year on handsets running on Android 10 and newer versions, according to Google. 

Other features coming to Android 15 include the ability to automatically enable Bluetooth the next day — we can assume this feature is designed to help Google ensure its Find My Device network continues operating as intended. Google has also added improvements to the widget picker on Android 15, as well as a redesigned volume control panel that offers better reachability during one-handed use.

Android 15 Beta 2 is available for download on the Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6, Pixel Fold, and Pixel Tablet. Select smartphones from a handful of manufacturers will also be eligible to install Android 15 beta versions, and you can access the complete list of compatible handsets here.

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Google’s Private Space Feature for Android 15 Will Let Users Hide Apps With a Separate Account: Report

Google has been working on a new feature for Android 15 called Private Space and a new report now reveals the features it might offer. In December 2023, a report revealed the existence of Private Space for the first time. But back then, its features were not known, and it was believed to just be a tool to securely hide apps and files that users did not want others to see. A new report now sheds more light on its functionalities.

According to tipster Mishaal Rahman (via Android Authority), Google has developed the feature significantly since its first sighting last year. The feature was spotted in the Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2.1 release. Interestingly, it is not available in the Android 15 Developer Preview 2 build. As per the screenshots, Private Space now comes with the description, “Hide or lock private apps in a separate space. Use a dedicated Google Account for extra security.”

The ability to sign up to Private Space with a dedicated account is perhaps the biggest development for the feature, as it allows users to entirely separate the space from the rest of the device. While creating a new Private Space, the prompt to enter a separate Google account reportedly appears again and states, “Using a dedicated account helps to stop synced files, photos, and emails appearing outside your space.” The tipster revealed that users will have to add a lock pattern or PIN to the space which is similar to the phone lock by default, but can be changed for added security.

Another major development to Private Space is the ability to install apps privately that do not show up outside of the space. The apps are downloaded using the Google account that has been used to create the space. As per the report, users can either download apps from within the Private Space through a dedicated ‘install apps’ button or by long pressing an app outside the space which shows an option to ‘install in private’.

Once created, Private Space shows up as a thin strip at the bottom of the app drawer with a lock icon placed at the corner, according to the tipster. Tapping the icon prompts the user to enter the password to get inside the space. The thin strip can also be hidden by going to Settings > Security & privacy > Private Space. Once hidden, Private Space will not be visible at all and the only way to find it is by searching for “Private Space” and tapping on the chip that appears.

Through the same settings option, users can reportedly also allow sensitive notifications on the lock screen, choose when to automatically lock the space, change its screen lock, and delete it. The feature has not been rolled out by Google, but it is believed that future Android 15 beta updates could ship with it.

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