Anti-scam settings on iPhone, Pixel and Galaxy you should check

Scammers have become very good at getting us to do the dirty work for them. Someone may pose as your bank, claim your account was hacked or tell you to move money before something terrible happens. The call or message might sound convincing enough that you willingly follow the instructions.

That's one reason a caught my attention. Apple calls it Impersonation Risk Detection, and it can help supported apps recognize signs that you may be acting under the influence of a scammer.

If you use Android, keep reading. Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy phones have their own built-in scam protections, and some of them go after the problem from a different direction. I would check these settings no matter which of these phones is in your pocket.

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Apple introduced Impersonation Risk Detection with iOS 27. The feature is designed to help with active social engineering scams, where someone pressures or guides you into doing something yourself. That last part is important. Traditional security can help block malware or stop an unauthorized login. However, those defenses can have a harder time helping when you are the legitimate account holder and a scammer has convinced you to send money or change sensitive account information.

When you perform certain sensitive actions inside a supported third-party app, that app can ask Apple for a risk assessment. Apple says examples may include making a payment or changing critical security information such as a password.

The app then receives one of three risk levels:

From there, the app decides how to respond. It might ask you to verify your identity, delay an action or display a warning before letting you continue. That could give you one more opportunity to stop when a scammer is rushing you through a payment or account change.

Impersonation Risk Detection looks at signals related to how you are using your device. Apple says those signals can include interaction patterns, timing, context and basic sensor data. Apple's privacy documentation gives some additional examples. Your iPhone may consider whether you are sharing your screen as well as the approximate number of recent phone calls or emails you have received. It can combine that assessment with certain Apple Account information, including recent App Store downloads and purchases.

The goal is to look for unusual behavior that could suggest someone is guiding or pressuring you. However, there is an important limitation. This feature works only with third-party apps that support Apple's Impersonation Risk Detection system. Turning it on does not give every app on your iPhone .

Apple says it never analyzes the content of your Photos, Messages or Mail for this feature. The underlying device information used to create the assessment also stays protected from both Apple and the requesting app. There is still some information sharing you should understand before turning it on. Your iPhone creates an on-device assessment and sends that assessment, rather than the underlying device data, to Apple.

Apple can then combine it with certain Apple Account activity to generate the final risk signals. Apple also learns the category of activity you