Android 15 could be getting screen sharing protections

Android 15 could get a new privacy option to hide sensitive content when sharing your device’s screen. This would be a great help to avoid accidentally leaking notifications or messages during a presentation from your phone.

Android allows you to share the content of your screen, which is quite practical. However, there is no option to block things like notifications or incoming messages while you do this. So, there is always the risk of a potential leak of sensitive content. That said, Mishaal Rahman spotted something interesting about it in Android 15 Beta 1.1.

According to the Android Police report, the latest Android 15 Beta includes references to “Sensitive content protection” while sharing your screen. As its name suggests, this would prevent notifications, private messages, or content from being leaked during these situations. Currently, the feature is not functionally implemented in the OS. However, the references spotted give clues as to how it would work.

The option to hide sensitive content when sharing screens that Android 15 could get

Once implemented, the feature would bring a new API to manage UI toolkits such as Jetpack Compose, WebView, and others. Although it is not yet known exactly what possibilities the API will offer, it could hide specific items or screen sections so that they do not appear while you share your device’s screen. Also, there is a flag for “sensitive notification app protections” that would block app notifications too.

For now, it is unknown how the OS will determine which apps are “sensitive.” It would be quite useful if Android allowed you to set the specific apps that require this type of protection.

It’s noteworthy that some OEMs have already implemented a similar feature on their devices. Xiaomi is one of them, allowing you to share your screen with the peace of mind that no private or compromising notification will appear while you do so. However, Android AOSP receiving a similar tool would be great news for everyone since it would be available to many more people.

Its implementation is not yet 100% secure

It is important to note that even the source does not guarantee that the feature will be available in Android 15. With these types of features in the early stages of development, anything can happen. We could have to wait years for its implementation, or it could even be scrapped before it happens. Be that as it may, we will probably have new developments in this regard in the coming months.