Google Photos will soon let iPhone and Android users save their photos behind a biometrically protected locked folder as Google pushes for greater privacy features on mobile. It’s a nice way to get some peace of mind and keep sensitive personal photos off the cloud.
Locked Folder is a feature Google introduced for Pixels earlier this year that lets them hide sensitive photos out of view. If a photo is hidden away behind a “locked folder,” it won’t show up. It’s a lot like the hidden album feature on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, but with the benefit of password or biometric protection. Images in the locked folder also aren’t synced to Google Photos, but restricted to the device used. Locked Folder will come to iPhones early next year, while non-Pixel Android users will have it sometime “soon.”
Google also announced a package of other features it is bringing to
For Android phones in general, Google is bringing the same phishing protection it provides in Gmail to Google Messages and the RCS chat service. In the same vein, Google Fi customers on
Finally, Google is adding a HTTPS-first mode to the Chrome browser. Users will be able to prevent pages that don’t support HTTPS from loading by default, with the option being given to navigate away from the site.
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