Clipboard Protection feature available in Android 13 and 14 is your latest safeguard for critical information copied on your smartphone. Functioning as a vigilant guardian, it serves as a gatekeeper, overseeing and controlling app access to the clipboard. This proactive measure aims to mitigate the potential risk of sensitive data, such as passwords, addresses, or credit card numbers, being inadvertently exposed to unauthorised apps.
How Clipboard Protection Feature Works
- Clipboard Access Notification: You’ll receive a persistent notification whenever an app attempts to access the clipboard, keeping you informed about such activities. This transparency ensures you know which apps are accessing your copied data.
- Automatic Clearing of Sensitive Content: In instances where you copy text containing potentially sensitive data (like passwords or credit card numbers), the clipboard automatically removes that content after a brief period (typically around 1 hour by default). This prevents unauthorised apps from accessing information that should remain private.
- Prevention of Visual Leaks:
Android 14 enhances security measures by concealing sensitive content previews in app notification toasts. Even if an app accesses the clipboard before its content is automatically cleared, sensitive information won’t be visible in the notification preview.
- Utilising Clipboard Protection: There’s no need to enable or disable this feature separately—it’s seamlessly integrated into the core functionality of the clipboard in Android 13 and 14. Simply stay attentive to notifications and rely on the automatic clearing mechanisms to safeguard your copied data.
Important things to remember:
- Although Clipboard Protection provides significant security benefits, it’s important to remain vigilant. Exercise caution when copying sensitive data and refrain from pasting it into untrusted apps or websites.
- Certain applications, such as password managers, may necessitate ongoing access to the clipboard for their proper functioning. You can grant them permission individually through the notification, ensuring that only trusted apps retain access.