We already knew that Android 16 would offer an advanced protection mode, with several measures designed to strengthen device security: blocking the installation of apps outside the Play Store, disabling 2G connections, memory protection extensions, etc. But now a new, discreet tool has been added to the mix: automatic restart after inactivity.
Three days without touching your phone? It will reboot on its own
It's not official yet, but a look at the code of the Google Play Services app (version 25.11.34) allowed Android Authority to spot a rather clear line of code: "Reboot the device if it remains locked for 3 days".
This option seems to be an integral part of Android's Advanced Protection Mode (AAPM). The idea is simple: if you leave your phone locked for three days in a row, it reboots. And this is not trivial: once rebooted, an encrypted Android smartphone becomes virtually unreadable until it has been unlocked. An effective way to block access to data, even if someone gets their hands on the device.
Google didn't come up with this idea out of nowhere. With iOS 18, Apple is offering exactly the same thing, although this new feature arrived without fanfare. It has also caused Some confusion: In early November, US police officers saw seized iPhones reboot for no apparent reason, disrupting their analysis attempts.
Security researcher Jiska Classen of the Hasso Plattner Institute confirmed the existence of this inactivity reboot via a detailed post, supported by a code capture. And that's not all: the operating system uses an internal timer that triggers the reboot once the time limit has elapsed, thus putting the iPhone into a state where its data is locked much more rigidly.
Even better: GrapheneOS, an ultra-secure version of Android, has already offered this function for a long time, with an automatic reboot after only 18 hours. A true reference in the world of cybersecurity. mobile.
From a user's perspective, this feature has a big advantage: making it harder to access data if their phone ever falls into the wrong hands. Even unlocking the device with specialized tools becomes more complicated after a reboot, as files remain encrypted until the next manual authentication.
But for others, especially law enforcement, this measure could complicate the job a bit. If a phone is seized without being turned on or handled quickly, the countdown starts... and can result in a surprise reboot, blocking access to the investigation elements.
It remains to be seen whether Google will enable this feature by default, or if it will be reserved for users who choose to activate the advanced protection mode. In any case, it is better to have your code in mind, because your smartphone could reboot by itself while you forget it in a drawer.
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