Security and privacy settings roll out to close Pixel Feature Drop

by James · December 20, 2022

To end the December feature drop, Google is now rolling out the combined security and privacy settings for Pixel phones running Android 13 QPR1.

Update 20/12: In recent days, the Security and Privacy menu has become more widespread to non-Pixel 7 devices. In our case, it’s a Pixel 4a, 6a and 6 Pro. In addition to checking into the Settings app, another sign that it’s live is to pull down Quick Settings and have the new tile appear.

We have one report that the unified settings are available on Android 13 QPR2 Beta 1, but not on a 7 Pro we checked tonight.

Original 12/9: In Settings, the new Security & Privacy menu uses a shield icon that has a badge with Google choosing to highlight “App Security, Device Lock, Permissions” in the description.

The very first item on this page is a card that notes the status of your device with the option to start a scan. If there are no problems, you will get “Looks good” and the shield mark in green. If problems are identified, as in the cover image above, you will be prompted to take action. (It’s also worth noting how the design Google showed off at I/O 2022 in May has “Protected by Android” branding that doesn’t appear today.)

Bottling App security opens the Play Protect page in Google Play, while Device lock is a drop-down curtain with Screen lock and Face and fingerprint unlock.

Google Security Check first asks you to select an email and then takes you to the corresponding Google account page, while Find my device opens the on/off settings. Updates notes the Android security update level and the Google Play system update, while Privacy is the last dropdown menu:

Privacy dashboard
Permit manager
Privacy controls

More security settings are unchanged from before: Smart Lock, Device admin apps, Encryption and credentials, Trust agents, App pinning and Confirm SIM deletion.

It is also More privacy settings: Notifications on lock screen, Show media on lock screen, Android System Intelligence, Personal use of app data, Autofill service from Google, Google’s location log, Activity controls, Ads and Usage and diagnostics.

There’s also a new Quick Settings/Security & Privacy page that lets you quickly perform a scan, as well as toggle camera, microphone access, and location.

Old stand-alone security and privacy settings

How to get security and privacy

So far, we’ve encountered security and privacy settings on a Pixel 7 and 7 Pro running the stable Android 13 QPR1 build after updating to all available Google Play system updates. In our case, the first came in at around 50MB and the second was under 1MB. After it is completed (November 1, 2022), we went to App info to Force shutdown The Settings app.

Update: As of this evening, wide availability appears to be limited to the Pixel 7 series.

This is the last part of the December Feature Drop. Free Google One VPN started rolling out at the beginning of the month, Clear Calling and unified Pixel Launcher search are live after installing Android 13 QPR1, Recorder 4.2 with speaker tags went live yesterday, and Live Bloom is available with an update to Pixel Live The Wallpaper app via the Play Store. Pixel 6 and 6 Pro should update Android System Intelligence and Digital Wellbeing to detect coughing and snoring.