Android is safer than iOS (in protecting you from scams) | Infinium-tech

Quick question – which is safer? Android or iOS? Many people will intuitively choose the latter, and argue that it’s Apple’s ‘walled garden’ approach that makes it so – in fact, Apple itself keeps saying something like this every time the EU is trying to open up another part of its ecosystem.

But things are not always what they seem. And in at least one specific way, Android is actually more secure than iOS. We are talking about protection from scams. A study by YouGov states that iOS users are 65% more likely than Android users to report receiving three or more scam messages in a week, while Android users are 58% more likely than iOS users to say they have not received any scam messages in the week prior to this survey.

Additionally, Android users are 20% more likely than iOS users to describe their device’s scam protection as “very effective” or “extremely effective.”

These results come from a survey of 5,000 smartphone users in the US, India and Brazil, but keep in mind that Google was involved with YouGov. Speaking of Google, Pixel device owners were 96% more likely than iPhone owners to report zero scam messages, iPhone users were 136% more likely than Pixel owners to say they received a high volume of scam messages, and iPhone users were 150% more likely than Pixel owners to say their device was not effective at all at preventing mobile fraud.

In a separate assessment, comparing the built-in scam and fraud protection on four devices (Pixel 10 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, and Motorola Razr+ 2025), the iPhone came out last when it came to the number of security features (see image below).

The report notes Android’s “robust call screening”, scam detection, and real-time scam alert authentication capabilities as key differences versus iOS. Google Messages filters out known spam and for more complex threats, Scam Detection uses on-device AI to analyze messages from unknown senders for patterns of conversational scams and provide real-time warnings. The app also blocks links in messages that are determined to be spam or scams.

The Phone by Google app automatically blocks known spam calls, and Call Screen can answer calls on your behalf to identify fraudsters (in markets where it’s available). If you also reply, you have Scam Detection, which uses on-device AI to provide real-time alerts for suspicious conversation patterns. Finally, Android helps prevent social engineering by preventing high-risk actions like installing untrusted apps or disabling security settings during a call.

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