How many times has Google helped protect you from being scammed? Whether it spotted a fishy-looking email, or flagged a suspicious incoming call, every day there are lots of steps Google is taking to insulate you from all the bad actors out there. Succeeding at this task requires Google being able to recognize scams in the first place, and today the company announces a new partnership aimed at helping it do just that.
Google is helping to found the Global Signal Exchange (GSE), a platform for sharing information about scams and fraud. It’s doing this in collaboration with the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and DNS Research Federation, groups similarly interested in pushing back against the tide of scammers. For starters, the group is collating a massive number of URLs and IP addresses that they’ve already associated with online fraud. That’s just part of a pilot project, though, and the GSE intends to dial up its activities following its formal launch at the start of 2025.
These three are already soliciting additional members to join their ranks, and contribute to this clearing house for all things scams and fraud. The thinking there seems to be that more sources, contributing more data about scams in real time will only empower the GSE to recognize bad actors faster and take the steps needed to protect end users from their scams.
We know from experience that fighting scams and the criminal organizations behind them requires strong collaboration among industry, businesses, civil society and governments to combat bad actors and protect users. We’re committed to doing our part to protect users, including through our continued work developing tools, publishing research, and sharing expertise and information with others to protect people online.
Separately from news of this effort, Google shares the latest progress on adoption of Cross-Account Protection, which lets sites that support you signing in with your Google account share notifications about security incidents or suspicious activity. Since getting underway back in May, the program has exploded to cover some 3.2 billion user accounts. If you’re not using it yet, check out Google’s support docs for info on how to get started.
