Google adds fake call detection as AI scam calls surge

Google has begun adding fake call detection to Android as scam artists move beyond obvious spam and into calls that sound like a boss, a relative or a trusted contact. The new feature checks whether a call is actually coming from a contact’s device using end-to-end encrypted RCS, and Google said it was enabled by default with the option to turn it off.

The rollout, which arrived in the June Android Drop on June 2, comes as phone and text scams have become the dominant front line of fraud. Google said in March 2025 that scammers used generative AI-powered tools to steal more than $1 trillion from mobile consumers globally in 2024, citing the Global Anti-Scam Alliance. Google has also said most scams now arrive through calls and text messages, and that traditional spam defenses are weaker because many attacks begin innocently before turning harmful mid-conversation.

The scale of impersonation fraud has kept rising. The Federal Trade Commission said in April 2024 that it received more than 330,000 reports of business impersonation scams and nearly 160,000 reports of government impersonation scams in 2023, with reported losses above $1.1 billion. The agency and the FBI have both warned that scammers can use short audio clips and voice-cloning tools to mimic family members, employers or authority figures and push for fast payments or sensitive information.

Google’s approach differs from its existing Scam Detection for calls, which uses on-device AI and does not store or send conversation audio or transcription to Google servers. That older system is off by default and works only on Pixel devices in certain countries, with Pixel 9 and later using Gemini Nano on-device. Google said the new fake call detection is meant to help Android users spot impersonators and more sophisticated AI-driven deepfake attacks before trust is weaponized against them.

Security firms say the threat is no longer theoretical. Pindrop said in June 2025 that deepfake fraud had surged 1,300% after analyzing more than 1.2 billion customer calls. Hiya said in February 2025 that deepfake fraud calls are among the most financially devastating phone scams. The FBI warned in May 2024 that criminals were using AI for phishing, social engineering and voice and video cloning, then followed in May 2025 with a public alert about malicious text and voice campaigns impersonating senior U.S. officials. As fraudsters adapt, detection tools are starting to look less like a premium feature and more like a basic layer of phone security.