Last October, Alphabet's Google launched an Advanced Protection Program in order to provide stronger security for varied users such as government officials and journalists who are at a higher risk of being targeted by hackers. This protection limited users from accessing their Google data only from the company's own Web and mobile app.s Now the tech giant has extended this service to support Apple's own apps for iOS, including Apple Mail, Calendar, and Contacts.
The Advanced Protection Program gives you protection from phishing activities and blocking fraudulent account access, apart from other security services. Earlier, only Google applications were able to access Google data through this program, but moving forward, Apple's native apps will be able to access users' Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts. Google promises to expand this list even more as and when it recognises which apps are genuine enough to access your data, and which aren't.
"When you sign into iOS native applications with your Google account, you will get instructions on how to complete the sign-in process if you're enrolled in Advanced Protection. We'll continue to expand the list of trusted applications that can access Google data in the future," the company writes on its blog post.
In this day and age, when your data isn't as secure as you think it would be, the Advanced Protection Program is a boon for those who store sensitive information online. It goes further than traditional 2-step verification, requiring you to use a physical security key to sign back into your account after you've logged out, or anytime you sign in on a new device. The Advanced Protection Program also helps block fraudulent access to your account by adding extra steps to the account recovery process to prevent people from impersonating you and pretending they've been locked out of your account.
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