Pulsestacks, April 17 - The upcoming Android 15 operating system is expected to introduce a new feature: app isolation. This feature aims to better protect users from potentially harmful apps.
Android has always had robust security mechanisms in place to guard against malicious apps. Google's Play Protect security service also automatically removes detected malware. However, no security software is flawless and false positives are a possibility. Play Protect typically adopts a cautious approach, asking users whether to remove a suspicious app when detected. To better assist users in dealing with these apps, Android 15 might incorporate an "app isolation" feature, which could offer a more effective solution.
Users familiar with desktop antivirus software, such as those on Windows, may recognize the concept of "isolation." When an antivirus program isolates a file, it is usually because it suspects the file might be malicious but cannot delete it or confirm its malicious nature, thus leaving the decision to the user. The isolated file is segregated from the rest of the system, cannot be executed, and thereby ensures that potential malware cannot cause harm.
Traditional app isolation features do not exist in Android systems, mainly because Android was designed from the outset with a focus on system security. Android apps cannot gain system-level access and are by default placed in a sandbox environment. They can only communicate with other apps through predefined APIs and can only access these APIs with explicit permissions. Due to these restrictions, users generally do not need to download third-party antivirus or anti-malware software for their Android devices. Given these operational differences, the app isolation feature in Android 15 would slightly differ from that in Windows.
How Does App Isolation Work in Android 15?
When an app is isolated in Android 15, its behavior changes from that of a normal app. While still visible on the user's home screen and in Android settings, the app will face several restrictions:
According to pulsestacks, these restrictions make isolated apps similar to disabled apps, though they still appear on the home screen. Additionally, "App Isolation" shares some similarities with the "Focus Mode" feature in digital wellbeing services, but isolation can restrict individual components of an app. Overall, App Isolation falls between disabling an app and pausing it.
However, it's unclear when Google will officially launch this new feature. Traces of App Isolation were first found in November of last year during the Android 14 QPR2 Beta 1, but the developer page for isolated apps has since been removed. While the feature flag to enable OS-level app isolation still exists, users currently cannot manually isolate apps, not even via command line. Additionally, neither the Google Play Store nor the Google Mobile Services apps currently request permissions to isolate apps. Therefore, it's entirely possible that this feature may not debut in Android 15 and could be postponed to a future version.
