Google Announces Cross-App Security Alerts, Guest Mode for Assistant in Safe Browsing Push

Google has recently been dedicated towards enhancing its safety and privacy features for users. Most recently, the company has announced that it will start sending alerts to users if there is a security issue with their Google account. The idea is to send a notification to users on Google’s apps when a security issue is detected with their Google account. The alerts will be cross-app alerts meaning that a notification will show up on all Google apps. Google announced the feature in a blog post, along with a new Guest Mode for Google Assistant, and more.

Google shared a GIF demonstrating how the alert will look like. The company is rolling out the update on a limited basis in the coming weeks. Google told The Verge that the alerts will only be on iOS smartphones at first. In its blog post, Google said that it plan to expand the feature more broadly early next year. “When we detect a serious Google Account security issue, we’ll automatically display an alert within the Google app you’re using and help you address it—no need to check email or your phone’s alerts,” Google said in its blog post.

Apart from the security alert, Google also announced a Guest mode on Google Assistant. The guest mode on Google Assistant is for those who don’t use Assistant due to privacy concerns since Google stores all the interactions with its Assistant on your Google account by default. In guest mode, Google won’t save those interactions. Google says that users will be able to turn on Guest Mode on Google Assistant using voice command (“Hey Google, turn on Guest Mode”). The Verge quotes the company as saying that it will roll out the Guest Mode in the coming weeks to Nest smart speakers and displays.

Google has also simplified the procedure of checking if an account is protected. Starting today, users can search for phrases like “Is my Google account secure?” to see a summary of their privacy settings.

Google has been announcing a slew of safety and privacy features since the last few days as October is considered the National Cybersecurity Month in the United States.