Advanced Protection Mode allows users to protect their devices from a range of threats, including theft, network-related concerns, and potentially malicious or harmful apps. In short, it gives high-risk and/or vulnerable individuals one-click access to a range of device-related safeguards.
The feature has functioned pretty decently since its rollout last year with Android 16, though there are still some potential vulnerabilities that Google needs to fix. That’s exactly what the company intends to do with the next Android version, specifically by addressing apps and developers that misuse the AccessibilityService API.
With Android 17 Beta 2, which landed last month, Advanced Protection Mode disallows apps that aren’t designated as accessibility-related from obtaining the necessary permissions to function. This means users will need to disable Advanced Protection Mode to use such apps with Android 17, as revealed in an Android Authority report.
To be clear, these restrictions aren’t in place with the Android 16 QPR3 update, which arrived with the March Pixel Drop. If your device is running this software, Advanced Protection Mode will allow such apps to run without any issue. But the limitations could be bundled with the stable Android 17 update, which is expected to roll out sometime in June.
Some popular apps may be inadvertently affected
Google clearly states that the AccessibilityService API “should only be used to assist users with disabilities in using Android devices and apps.” However, a wide range of apps that aren’t technically accessibility-related also require these permissions to provide particular features.
This leaves scope for abuse, as a potentially harmful app may obtain these permissions under the guise of being an accessibility app. The AccessibilityService API allows apps to perform on-device tasks on the users’ behalf, including viewing the screen or managing other aspects of the device. So it’s never a good idea to blindly grant such key permissions to apps that don’t serve that purpose.
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There are exceptions to this, as Android Authority rightly points out with the example of the dynamicSpot app. This app was released in 2022 to let users experience Apple’s Dynamic Island functionality on their Android phones. Since this app basically reads your notifications and reproduces them in a more appealing way on top of your screen, it requires this core accessibility permission.
But as it turns out, Android 17 Beta 2 does not allow the use of the dynamicSpot app when Advanced Protection Mode is enabled. So while Google’s intentions here are completely understandable, this move may inadvertently affect apps like dynamicSpot that rely on this permission to function.
This may also impact some features of your favorite launcher apps, or practically any app that isn’t categorized as an accessibility app, but requires those permissions to deliver certain features. It will be interesting to see if Google will make any tweaks to the software ahead of Android 17’s stable release to address these exceptions.
