Google Pixel Watch users just got a great new feature to protect you

If you're anything like us, it's hard enough to find time in the day to answer your phone to important calls, let alone nuisance ones. Scam calls are not the one, though if you happen to have a Pixel 9, you're one of the lucky ones that can benefit from the device's real-time Scam Detection feature.

Speaking of that feature, there's some even better news for those that have a Pixel 9 and a Pixel Watch 2 or Pixel Watch 3 in that Scam Detection is coming to the smartwatches so you don't need to take your phone out of your pocket to know the call isn't worth your time.

The feature works on the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL and Pixel Fold by using Gemini Nano with Multimodality to recognise suspicious patterns that are often used by scammers. It works on-device and in real time, with the phones alerting you to the on-screen "Likely Scam" warning, where you can then choose to select 'Not a scam' if it's actually your mum calling, or 'End call' if the detection is correct and it is in fact spam.

How does Spam Detection work on the Pixel Watch?

On the Pixel Watch, if you take a call and it seems to be spam, "Pixel Watch alerts you to a scam mid-call when it receives a Bluetooth signal from your Pixel 9", reported 9to5Google who spotted the feature

The feature is only available on Pixel Watch 2 and Pixel Watch 3 at the moment, and while it is rolling out today, it is currently only available to those in the US who have their device set to English.

You will need to ensure the scam detection feature is on too, which you can do on your Pixel 9 device by opening the Phone app and heading to Settings. From here, select Scam Detection and ensure the warning is turned on.