Samsung Galaxy S26 reportedly getting a 'Google Pixel exclusive' feature – and it could save you from getting scammed

The Samsung Galaxy S26 family of phones could be the first non-Pixel devices to offer Google's scam call detection feature. So far, the clever feature has only been available on Pixel devices.

Scam detection will alert the user if an incoming call is potentially a scam. Spam calls are a huge problem, from benign sales calls through to sophisticated phishing scams, looking to gain information or trick the recipient into disclosing details as part of a wider hack.

Clues to inclusion of this feature have been found in code inside the Phone by Google app, where the model numbers for the forthcoming Samsung phones have been found, alongside Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 codenames. The details were uncovered by Android Authority.

One of the interesting things about scam detection on those Pixel devices is that it uses Gemini Nano on the AI Core to power it, whereas older Pixel phones have a less sophisticated machine learning model behind it.

The addition to Samsung phones would mark the first time that this feature has been available to other devices and might indicate a larger change.

How could scam detection work on Samsung Galaxy S26?

Samsung devices currently ship with the company's own dialler for calling. It's been in place for many years and many Samsung owners probably use it without even thinking. However, the Phone by Google app is available on the Play Store for installation on any Android device.

Even so, the scam detection features haven't worked on other phones to date, even when using that app, which is where the change comes in.

For this to really have an impact on Samsung phones, people are going to have to use it, which suggests that we might see a change to Phone by Google as the default calling app on Samsung devices.

This happened previously when Samsung started using Google Messages by default rather than its own app. This was to support RCS across Android, which runs on Google's servers.

Seasoned Android users might already switch to Phone by Google when they get a new device, but it's likely that the vast majority of users are unaware of the difference. This could be a way for Google to have another small foothold on Samsung phones, using scam detection as a sweetener.

It's expected that we'll find out what's happening with the launch of the Galaxy S26 models at Unpacked, currently thought to be around 25 February.