When we open an app on our Android smartphone e we are asked for access to the locationwe often don’t think about the implications of this choice.
Yet, the decision between sharing our position (precise or approximate) can make a difference very substantial difference for privacy.
Well, with Android 16 Google has finally addressed a vulnerability that has long compromised the effectiveness of the rough location modeespecially for those who live far from large urban centers.
Two levels of precision to protect your privacy
To understand what is changing, let’s first remember that the Android operating system has long offered two options when an application requests access to our location.
The first is the precise localizationwhich provides the exact GPS coordinates of the device with a margin of error ranging from 3 to 50 meters. The mode is definitely functional for navigation apps like Google Maps or Wazewhich require timely directions to guide us towards the destination. However, it may be less useful to others.
The second option is the approximate locationwhich is in fact designed for all those applications that do not need to know exactly where we are, but only need a general indication.
In this case, the system provides a much vaguer estimate of our position, with an approximation of up to 3 square kilometers. This is an ideal solution for weather applocal news services or e-commerce platforms that simply need to know in which geographic area we operate.
The problem is that many applications still require access to precise location even when they don’t need it, often to collect user tracking data. For this reason, the ability to grant only approximate access is an important tool for protecting your privacy.
The bug in approximate geolocation
Having clarified the above, it was made known that until now there was a bug in this protection system. Approximate localization works well in large cities, where population density is high. In a metropolitan area, knowing that someone is within a 3 square kilometer radius means placing them among thousands of other people, making it virtually impossible to identify the specific individual.
However, the situation changes in rural or sparsely populated areas. In a small town or open countryside, an area of 3 square kilometers might contain only a few roads, a couple of buildings and a handful of homes. In these contexts, even a rough location estimate can be enough to accurately identify where a person is, completely defeating the protective purpose of the feature.
The vulnerability became quite problematic because Android applied the same level of approximation regardless of the area you were in. In other words, the system did not distinguish between the center of Milan and a mountain village with a few hundred inhabitants, always providing the same breadth of estimate which, in the second case, was completely inadequate to guarantee anonymity.
What solution has been adopted by Android 16
Hence, the awaited arrival of the solution introduced with Android 16: with this operating system Google has in fact introduced a new feature called density-based coarse locationsor approximate locations based on population density. The mechanism is simple: the system checks the population density of the area where the device is located before communicating the location to the applications.
When the system detects that the user is in a sparsely populated area, it automatically provides apps with an even less precise estimate of the location. The goal is to ensure that the level of anonymity is equivalent whether you are in a densely populated city or a rural area. In this way, the approximate location feature delivers on its promise of privacy in any geographic context.
From a technical point of view, Android 16 achieves this by introducing support for i population density providersthe components of the system that determine the population density at a given location. Population density providers are typically implemented by system applications such as Google Play Serviceswhich already manages the APIs used by most apps to get users’ locations.
However, Google has designed this functionality in a flexible way, also allowing smartphone manufacturers to implement their own density providers, with a choice that is particularly important in markets such as China, where Google’s location services are not available and local companies must be able to offer alternative solutions.
The implementation is yet to be confirmed
In any case, despite the evidence that emerged in the Android 16 code and some signals from Google Play Services suggesting that the functionality is ready, it is not yet clear whether it is actually operational on user devices.
The developers have in fact noticed that the necessary flags are activated on Pixel devices and that the configuration to use an external population density provider is enabled, but this is obviously not enough to confirm that the system is already in use.
In short, the only certain and definitive way to check if the function is active would be to go to a sparsely populated area and check if the estimate of the approximate position is even more vague than usual. This is a test that will require time and specific travel, but which will provide conclusive proof of the implementation of the new technology.
The Bluewave project for more accurate localization
Along with improving privacy, Google is also working on increasing localization accuracy. According to rumors last year, the company is testing a new solution called Bluewavea positioning engine that would combine raw data from global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) with correction data received from ground-based base stations.
If confirmed, the new technology would allow the position to be calculated with approximately 2.25 times greater precision than the current one. The first phases of testing reportedly began late last year, with plans for a launch later this year. However, the absence of official announcements or clear evidence suggests that the project has not yet been released publicly, or that Google has decided not to accompany it with a particular communication.
In any case, it is clear that the introduction of density-based localizations is an important progress in the direction of a more responsible and safer use of location services on Android. Geolocation is indeed one of the fundamental features of modern smartphonesbut its value is fully realized only when it is managed with respect for user privacy.
With these improvements, Google seems to want to encourage greater use of the rough location mode by app developers, finally making it reliable even for users who live in less densely populated areas. A change that could influence the approach to privacy in mobile localization, contributing to the definition of a new standard for the entire sector.
