- An auto-reboot feature is rolling out to Android phones and tablets
- This will automatically restart your device after three days of inactivity
- Your phone is more secure after a restart, helping to prevent unauthorized access
Not long ago we reported on how Android could get a thief-thwarting security feature already seen on iPhones, and now that feature is arriving.
As spotted by 9to5Google, the latest Google Play services update includes a feature that will restart your phone or tablet automatically after three days of inactivity. So in other words, if your device has remained locked for three consecutive days, it will shut down and restart, and there’s a good reason for this.
You see, after a restart, an Android phone or tablet will return to its ‘Before First Unlock’ state, in which its data is encrypted and it’s harder to unlock, as biometrics are disabled until after the first unlock – so a passcode is instead required.
This is set up to happen after three days of inactivity because it’s likely that if your phone is on but not being used for three days that someone else has it – such as a thief.
Coming soon
Google Play services 25.14 (which contains this auto-reboot feature) is now rolling out, but the rollout may take a week or so to reach all phones, and it’s possible that the auto-reboot feature may not be enabled until a while after that, with 9to5Google speculating that it could take a few weeks.
As such, we’re also not certain whether there will be a toggle or other option to enable this feature, or whether it will just happen automatically. We also don’t yet know whether this feature will come to all Android devices, but it’s likely that most recent phones will support this.
So, while it won’t stop your phone being stolen, you should at least soon have more reassurance that thieves won’t be able to access your data.
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