On Thursday, Google announced a significant enhancement to its efforts in combating online scams through the rollout of new AI-powered defenses in Chrome. The tech giant is set to implement Gemini Nano, its on-device large language model (LLM), specifically on desktop versions of Chrome. This innovative technology aims to bolster user protection against a growing number of online scams and fraudulent activities.
Google is leveraging the capabilities of Gemini Nano to enhance Chrome's Enhanced Protection mode of Safe Browsing. This mode provides users with the highest level of defense, offering twice the protection against phishing and other online threats compared to the browser’s Standard Protection mode. With this new integration, users who opt for Enhanced Protection will benefit from an additional layer of defense against online scams. The on-device approach allows for immediate insights into risky websites, safeguarding users from scams, including those previously unseen.
According to Google, “Gemini Nano’s LLM is perfect for this use because of its ability to distill the varied, complex nature of websites, helping us adapt to new scam tactics more quickly,” as detailed in a recent blog post. The company has already begun utilizing this AI-driven defense mechanism to protect users from fraudulent remote tech support claims and plans to expand its capabilities to Android devices and a broader range of scams in the near future.
In addition to the desktop enhancements, Google is also launching new AI-powered warnings for Chrome on Android devices. Users should be aware that risks from scammy sites can extend beyond the website itself, especially through notifications if enabled. Malicious websites can exploit these notifications to attempt to deceive users, which is why Chrome is now equipped to alert users about potentially malicious, spammy, or misleading notifications.
When Chrome’s on-device machine learning model flags a notification as potentially being a scam, users will receive a warning. This allows users to either unsubscribe from the notifications or view the blocked content. If users believe the warning was issued in error, they have the option to allow all future notifications from that site.
As part of its broader commitment to combat online fraud, Google has been utilizing AI to detect and block scams in Search. The company reports that its AI-powered scam detection systems are now able to identify and eliminate hundreds of millions of scammy results every day. This has resulted in a remarkable increase in the detection of fraudulent pages, with the system catching 20 times more scammy content than before.
One area of concern has been the rise of bad actors impersonating airline customer service agents to scam individuals seeking assistance. Google has taken significant steps to mitigate these scams, reportedly reducing their incidence by over 80%, thereby lowering the risk for users encountering scammy phone numbers in Search results.
With the introduction of AI-powered defenses in Chrome, both on desktop and Android, Google is taking proactive measures to protect users from online scams. By implementing Gemini Nano and enhancing warning systems, Google aims to create a safer browsing experience, ensuring users can navigate the web with confidence.
