Google on Wednesday took to its annual developer conference to announce a host of privacy and security updates, including support for virtual credit cards on Android and Chrome.
“When you use autofill to enter your payment details at checkout, virtual cards will add an additional layer of security by replacing your actual card number with a distinct, virtual number,” Google’s Jen Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
The search giant stated that the goal was to protect payment information during online shopping, and to prevent skimming attacks in which threat actors insert malicious JavaScript code into credit card numbers to steal them and then sell them off on the black marketplace.
The feature is expected to roll out in the U.S. for Visa, American Express, Mastercard, and Capital One cards starting this summer.
Interestingly, while Apple offers an option to mask email addresses via Hide My Email, which enables users to create unique, random email addresses to use with apps and websites, it’s yet to offer a similar option for creating virtual credit cards.
The development comes a week after Google, Apple, and Microsoft banded together to accelerate support for a common passwordless sign-in standard that allows “websites and apps to offer consistent, secure, and easy passwordless sign-ins to consumers across devices and platforms. “
Additionally, Google said it’s expanding phishing protections in Google Workspace to Docs, Slides and Sheets, and that it plans to debut a new “My Ad Center” later this year to give users more control over personalized ads on YouTube, Search, and Discover feed.
Users will also be able request personal identifiable information, such as their email address, telephone number or home address, to be removed using a new tool, which can be accessed from the Google App.
A new Account Safety Status setting is coming that “features a simple yellow icon on your profile pic that flags actions that you need to take in order to protect your account.” “
Other key privacy and security features unveiled at Google I/O 2022 include support for end-to-end encryption for group conversations in the Messages app for Android and the availability of on-device encryption for Google Password Manager.
