Android 12, which rolled out to newer Androids like the Pixel 6 last fall, will also be installed on the new Samsung Galaxy S22. We’re excited about Android 12’s many new features (and even discovered some hidden ones), but the privacy upgrades in particular caught our eye.
These privacy features are designed to give you more control over how much private information apps on your phone can access. You can now access a privacy dashboard that allows you to manage permissions and location. Here’s how to see exactly which apps have access to specific information about you, how to revoke any permissions you’re not happy with, and more.
How to tell if your phone’s camera or microphone is in use
Android 12 adds a new indicator to the top menu bar that appears when accessing your camera or microphone. When the indicator appears, you can swipe down from the top of the screen to view your quick settings panel and close access.
The new Privacy Dashboard provides a timeline of which apps accessed your phone and microphone and when. To access the Privacy Dashboard, go to Settings > Privacy > Privacy Dashboard.
Manage your location and permissions for Android apps
- Open the Privacy Dashboard.
- From the home page, you can navigate to the different permissions to see which apps have accessed the information in the past 24 hours. These include location, camera, microphone and contacts.
- Click the permission you want to view. You’ll see a timeline of which apps accessed the information and when.
- Tap Manage Permissions at the bottom of the screen. This will let you change what the app can access.
You’ll also find the ability to turn on approximate locations rather than precise locations, so apps that don’t need to know exactly where you are won’t get that level of detail.
Easily turn off microphone and camera access in all apps
Another new feature in Android 12 gives you more control over how you use your phone’s microphone and camera. Here’s how to turn them on and off across your phone:
- Open your Quick Settings bar.
- Turn the microphone or camera settings on or off.
Note that this will turn it off for the entire system, so even if you’ve given the app permission to access the microphone or camera in the past, this will override that permission. However, the application itself will not know that you have closed it. If you turn off your camera or microphone, Android will alert you when you open apps that need them.
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