Summary
Google has outlined Android protections, industry partnerships and community programmes aimed at tackling scams across Asia Pacific. Google.org announced $6 million in funding for work with The Asia Foundation and the Tech for Good Institute.
Google has outlined a set of product protections, industry partnerships and community programmes to address scams across Asia Pacific. In an announcement published on 3 November 2026, the company said Google.org would provide $6 million to The Asia Foundation and the Tech for Good Institute for work intended to help individuals and small businesses build scam resilience.
Google says the effort responds to increasingly complex scams run by organised networks. It cites a recent UN report that put 2025 scam losses across East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand at up to US$114.1 billion, and said more than 40% of ASEAN consumers had experienced scams.
Android protections and shared defences
Google says Android launched Fake Call Detection in 2026, a feature designed to identify phone-call impersonation using AI. The company says the feature is built on open RCS technology, which it says can enable other platforms to adopt similar protections.
On Pixel phones, built-in scam detection can flag potential scams in messages from many popular messaging apps. Google says it is working to bring this capability to additional Android users later in 2026. The announcement does not specify which devices or users will receive it first.
The company also says it is expanding Android developer verification to address malicious apps distributed outside Google Play. The measure is intended to cover apps wherever they are distributed, rather than only those installed through Google’s app store.
Google is also pursuing coordination between organisations. It joined other companies in signing the Industry Accord Against Online Scams and Fraud earlier in 2026, with the stated aim of sharing threat intelligence and coordinating responses. Building on that effort, Google says it helped establish the Japan Anti-Scam Alliance to support aligned work by public and private institutions. Google.org has also helped launch a Global Anti-Scams Philanthropy Collaborative focused on coordinating philanthropic action internationally.
Funding and community training
The $6 million Google.org commitment will support efforts by The Asia Foundation and the Tech for Good Institute. Google says the work will include training communities to recognise and withstand scams, incubating prototypes for AI-powered defences, and giving policymakers insights intended to strengthen measures against scams. The announcement does not give a timeline for these activities or report results from the new funding.
The programme adds to Google’s support for local organisations, including Singapore’s Bamboo Builders and the Taiwan FactCheck Center, which provide region-specific training. Google also points to Scam Ready ASEAN, an initiative of the ASEAN Foundation that brings scam-prevention resources to people across the region.
One of its educational resources, the Be Scam Ready game, simulates common scams to help people practise identifying them. Google says it is already available in Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan, and is being expanded to Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
Together, the initiatives combine device-level protections with information-sharing and public education. Their stated purpose is to make it harder for organised fraud to reach people and to improve communities’ ability to recognise scams.