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Nine settings, ten minutes, no money spent. Delete the ad ID, pause the two histories, lock permissions, switch on the theft lock, then revoke the loan apps.
The short version
- Delete the advertising ID. Settings, search it, tap Delete.
- Pause Web & App Activity; auto-delete at 3, 18 or 36 months.
- Pause Timeline. It lives on your device now, inside Maps.
- Read the green dot: camera or mic, live now.
- Permissions to While using the app. Deny the never-grant list.
- Search "theft protection": switch on the trio.
- Loan app took your contacts? Revoke, report to FCCPC.
Ads: delete the advertising ID
Every Android phone carries an advertising ID. Apps use it to stitch your behaviour across apps into one profile.
Since late 2021 the control is Delete advertising ID. Google swapped it in the Android 12 era; apps then see zeros. EFF's Android 12 guide, published 11 May 2022, names the control, read on 12 November 2026.
A September 2025 guide on privacyinternational.org printed "Opt out of Ads Personalisation", read on 30 September 2026. The screenshot is old.
Settings, search "advertising ID", tap Delete, confirm. Documented route: Settings, Privacy, Ads, Delete advertising ID. HiOS may file it under Google.
After the delete, apps see zeros. Nothing breaks; delete again any time.
Google saves: pause the account histories
Your Google account keeps two diaries. Web & App Activity logs searches, commands and sites, and lives account-side. Location History logs where you go; its entries now live on your phone.
PCMag's June 2026 explainer, read on 12 November 2026, draws one distinction. Off stops saving. Delete wipes what is stored; two different taps.
At myaccount.google.com, open Data & privacy, then History settings. Settings search reaches the same screens.
Set auto-delete to 3, 18 or 36 months and Google wipes older entries itself. YouTube history can be wiped alone.
Timeline: the history that moved house
The 2018 and 2021 guides describe a cloud Timeline. That screen is gone.
Since 1 December 2024, Timeline lives on the device. The Verge and The Hacker News reported the move in June 2024, read on 30 September 2026. A rolling 90 days migrated to the first signed-in device. Older cloud data was deleted.
Controls now sit inside Maps. Tap your profile picture, then Your Timeline. Pause, export, or delete from there.
Proton's July 2026 guide, read on 12 November 2026, draws the line. Pausing stops the written diary, not location services.
Pausing leaves the old diary on the phone. Delete device-side from the same Maps screen.
The green dot: read it, don't remove it
A green dot at the top means the camera or mic is live. Tap it; Android names the app.
Privacy Dashboard lists every app that touched camera, mic or location, with times. Search "privacy dashboard". Android Police and Samsung's Africa support site walk it, read on 30 September 2026.
Orange is Apple's microphone colour. An Android clip teaching "orange means mic" answers the wrong OS. Green is both sensors.
No switch removes the dot; it is non-disableable by design. Killing camera access to hide it is security self-harm.
If the app on the dot surprises you, deny its permission.
Permissions: the while-in-use sweep
Android splits permissions into levels. Aim for While using the app. Ask every time fits the mic. Allow once covers one-offs. Never means deny.
Search "permission manager". Groups appear one per permission. Work the table.
| Permission | Keep it at | Who gets it |
|---|---|---|
| Location | While using; approximate if offered | Maps, cabs, delivery |
| Camera | While using the app | Camera only |
| Microphone | While using, or Ask every time | Calls, recorder, voice |
| Contacts | Deny | Phone and mail |
| SMS | Deny | Bank apps |
| Accessibility | Deny | Assistive tools only |
| Display over other apps | Deny | Nobody honest needs it |
| Install unknown apps | Deny | Play Store only |
Pick approximate unless the app truly navigates. Auto-reset strips unused-app permissions; search "unused apps".
BGR's May 2026 listicle of never-grants names accessibility, unknown sources, overlays and contacts, read on 30 September 2026. Ask for any and you know the app.
ZDNet's June 2026 guide, read on 12 November 2026, recommends a review every few months. Contacts plus SMS plus accessibility is the scammer's profile, the same logic as our malware warning signs.
Private DNS: one quiet line on the network
Private DNS encrypts your lookups, so café Wi-Fi cannot see which sites you dial. Free, and installs nothing.
Search "private dns", choose Private DNS provider hostname, enter dns.adguard-dns.com. AdGuard's public DNS doc, read on 12 November 2026, prints the steps and hosts. Its words for the default server: AdGuard DNS will block ads and trackers.
Know the limits. Not a VPN, no help inside apps that ignore DNS, no help for what reaches the sites. Chrome's menu carries a Safety Check. Blocker picks are a separate comparison.
Theft: the five-minute lock
The theft trio arrived in October 2024. Search "theft protection"; the three toggles sit on one screen.
| Feature | What it does | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Theft Detection Lock | Sensors and AI spot a snatch, locks screen | Theft menu |
| Offline Device Lock | Locks the phone when offline | Theft menu |
| Remote Lock | Locks from the web with your number | Theft menu |
Computerworld's December 2025 run-through, read on 12 November 2026, documents the theft toggles inside Security & Privacy, under Device unlock.
Find Hub, formerly Find My Device, should be on by default, per Computerworld. Google's May 2026 security post, read on 12 November 2026, adds Mark-as-lost locks on Android 17.
Identity Check asks for a biometric for your passwords and primary PIN, only away from trusted places, per Computerworld. It guards the thief who has your PIN.
Google turns Theft Detection Lock and Remote Lock on by default on new Android 17 devices. It does the same on phones freshly reset or upgraded to Android 17. For Android 10 and newer, Google names Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and the UK. Nigeria is not named. Flip them yourself.
Android 16's Advanced Protection is one toggle for Google's strongest scam and fraud defences, per the same post. A lot, not all nine. Do both.
Nigeria: the loan apps and your contacts
In May 2023 Google barred Play Store loan apps from your contacts and photos. The Federal Government pushed the policy. Voice of Nigeria reported it on 10 April 2023, starting 31 May 2023, read on 12 November 2026. The store door holds. Installed apps kept what you gave them.
Contacts already granted? Revoke, don't uninstall. Search "permission manager", open Contacts, find the app, tap Don't allow. SMS, camera and accessibility the same way. Arm auto-reset under "unused apps".
| Situation | Action | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Installed, contacts granted | Revoke Contacts, then SMS and accessibility | Permission manager |
| Harassing you after a loan | Report to the FCCPC; warn your contacts | FCCPC complaint channels |
| Unused loan app | Let auto-reset strip its permissions | Unused apps setting |
| Brand-new loan app | Play Store only; read permissions first | Play Store listing |
metronub's June 2026 guide, read on 30 September 2026, runs the response. Revoke, report to the FCCPC, warn the people it messaged. Give the FCCPC the lender's name and screenshots. The FCCPC is the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
BlueCredit's April 2026 explainer, read on 12 November 2026, shows what lenders can and cannot reach. A compliant lender verifies you, it does not hoover your address book.
The antivirus question for these apps is its own piece.
Questions readers ask
Opt out or delete: does the wording matter?
It does. Opt out was the old toggle, gone with Android 12. Delete zeroes the ID. A page printing it today shows a dead screenshot.
Turn Timeline off, or off and delete?
Both. Off stops new entries; delete wipes what is saved, on the phone, from Maps.
Orange dot or green dot?
Green on Android, camera and mic both. Orange is iOS's mic. Android has no orange dot.
A loan app already has my contacts. Too late?
No. Revoke in Permission manager, report to the FCCPC, warn your contacts. Stopped new access, not old grants.
Will pausing break Maps?
No. Location keeps working; the written memory stops. Services on, history off.
Is there one switch for everything?
Advanced Protection on Android 16 comes closest. One toggle, Google's strongest defences. It does no sweep.
What I could not verify on the house phone
On this phone: no screenshot exists, no menu was opened. Paths print as Google documents them, a vendor documents them, or as a search string.
HiOS moves labels between builds. Search the words, not the path: "advertising ID", "permission manager", "private dns", "theft protection".
The theft toggles are version-gated. Auto-enable varies by version and market. Identity Check varies by build. Re-verify anything that differs after updates.
The bottom line
Delete the ad ID, pause the histories, sweep permissions, read the dot, arm the theft lock, revoke the loan apps. Ten minutes, nine settings, no naira spent. The faults live in our Android problems hub.
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