Google is testing out a new warning pop-up in Messages intended to help combat spam and hopefully protect users from potentially dangerous links.
Code sleuth @AssembleDebug and PiunikaWeb were able to manually enable the feature in the Google Messages beta version 20240402_01_RCO0 by toggling certain flags, which indicates Google is still working on the feature and it’s not quite ready for primetime yet.
The feature works by displaying a pop-up warning when users tap on a link sent to them from an unknown number. The warning says “Caution: this sender isn’t one of your contacts” and advises that links from unknown senders could “open unwanted or harmful content.”
Left: New link warning in Messages. Right: Old link warning. | Image credit: PiunikaWeb
To bypass the warning, users need to check a ‘Continue with possible risk’ box that says, “I understand that this link may be harmful.” Once checked, tapping continue will open the link. Otherwise, tapping the ‘Cancel’ button sends you back to the conversation.
The pop-up should only appear when tapping links in messages sent by unknown senders, so it shouldn’t cause an issue when chatting with friends, family, or other known senders. Moreover, the pop-up should work in group chats, but only for unknown participants in those chats, as well as for SMS messages.
It’s worth noting that Messages already has a warning pop-up for links from unknown senders, but the new pop-up adds additional steps to open these links. The extra friction might be enough to stop some people from opening potentially unsafe links they receive.
Source: @AssembleDebug, PiunikaWeb Via: Android Police
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