Android 16 could steal a thief-thwarting security feature from iPhones | usagoldmines.com

• Code in a Google app teardown points to an “inactivity reboot” feature
• This sounds very similar to a security tool available on iPhones
• It’s not active yet but will likely launch as part of Android 16

Late last year, Apple added a security feature to iPhones that should make it harder for thieves to use stolen phones – and which also caused issues for law enforcement, and now the same feature could be coming to Android.

The feature in question is known as “inactivity reboot”, and on iPhone it means the device will automatically reboot after three days of inactivity.

On Android, it could be exactly the same, with Android Authority having found a reference to “inactivity reboot” in a teardown of the Google Play Services app. As well as sharing a name with Apple’s feature, it seemingly functions the same, with the code string mentioning that this would restart a device if it remains locked for three days.

Blocking biometrics

The reason for doing this is that both iPhones and Androids are more secure after a reboot, as biometrics (like face and fingerprint scanners) are inactive, and instead you need to enter your PIN or password to unlock the phone.

The assumption – presumably – is that a device that is switched on but hasn’t been unlocked in several days may be in the hands of a thief, who has so far failed to unlock it. So if they don’t manage within three days, it will suddenly get a lot harder for them to do so.

This feature isn’t active on Android yet, and while it’s clearly something Google is exploring it’s always possible this won’t make it to public release, but there’s a good chance we’ll see it in Android 16.

More specifically, through its digging, Android Authority has found that this is probably part of Advanced Protection Mode, which is a more wide-ranging security feature that we already know is likely coming to Android 16.

As well as probably including inactivity reboot, this mode can do things like blocking sideloading, disabling 2G connections, and enabling Memory Tagging Extension (MTE) for apps, which is a feature that protects against memory safety bugs.

So it seems Google could be putting a major focus on security with its next Android release, and you shouldn’t have to wait too long to get these features, as Android 16 is expected to land in the second quarter of this year – meaning sometime between now and the end of June.

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