As with previous Android versions, Google is making privacy one of the key areas of focus in Android 12. To that end, Google has introduced three big privacy features—a new privacy dashboard, an option to hide your precise location, and privacy indicators.
In this article, we will discuss how you can get the Android 12 privacy indicators on your current Android device.
Android 12 Privacy Indicators
Among the many new features of Android 12, a subtle but extremely useful feature is the camera and microphone access indicators. If an app tries to access the device's camera or microphone in Android 12, you will immediately see an indicator in the top-right corner of the status bar.
They're similar to a feature introduced in iOS 14.
This will help you identify the Android apps trying to access the camera or the microphone without your consent.
As of writing this article, Android 12 is at the beta stage and only a handful of devices can install the Android 12 beta.
If your device isn't among the Android 12 beta device list, Access Dots is a great alternative to get camera and microphone access indicators without needing to upgrade.
Get the Android 12 Camera and Mic Access Indicators on Your Current Device
Download Access Dots, a free app from the Play Store.
Open the app and turn on the Access Dots toggle. This action will automatically take you to the Android accessibility settings. Now, enable Access Dots to run as an accessibility service.
You will now notice colored dots at the top of your screen whenever the camera or the mic is in use. If you toggle the Location Access Dot in the app settings, you will also see a dot whenever an app is using your location.
Unlike the privacy indicators in Android 12, you can change the color of the camera and microphone access indicators in Access Dots. Moreover, you can change the size and location of the dots.
Access Dots also keeps track of apps that have used the device's camera, microphone or location. On the app's home page, tap on the history clock button in the bottom-right corner to view the Access Log.
The repetitive ads might get annoying, but overall Access Dots is a fantastic solution if you want to get those Android 12 privacy indicators on your current smartphone. The app can be installed on any device running Android 7.0 and above.
Download: Access Dots (Free, in-app purchases available)
Prevent Apps From Using Your Camera or Mic
Out of the millions of apps on the Google Play Store, there will always be a few malicious ones who will try to gain unwanted access to the camera app or the microphone.
The Access Dots app helps avoid that, or Android 12 if it's available on your device.
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