Not everyone knows that Android devices come with a Guest Profile: here's how to create it and why it pays to do so
There is a mode in Android that allows you to preserve your privacy when you lend your phone to someone. It's called Guest mode, which allows you to create a profile on both smartphones and tablets, and to access only certain apps, such as your phone or internet browsing.
Imagine you have to give your phone to a colleague or your child so they can watch videos and cartoons: by setting the "guest" mode, the user won't be able to access messages, chats like WhatsApp, social networks like Facebook or even the gallery of photos and videos you've saved. Le app installate spariranno dalla schermata Home e sarà possibile utilizzare il dispositivo per altre funzioni, che però tengono ben al sicuro la vostra privacy, creando un sistema completamente separato dal profilo principale.
Modalità Ospite Android: come attivarla
La modalità Ospite può essere impostata su ogni dispositivo che supporta Android come sistema operativo, sia esso Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi o smartphone di altri produttori. Per attivarla, bisogna seguire un percorso che può variare da smartphone a smartphone. Generalmente, sono due i percorsi possibili:
- Impostazioni > Account e Utenti > Utenti;
- Impostazioni > Sistema > Avanzate.
Una volta individuata la modalità Ospite, si aprirà un menù rapido che consente di impostare un codice PIN per lo sblocco e il ritorno al profilo principale. La modalità consentirà quindi di scegliere a quali app avere accesso e se bloccare o meno le chiamate in entrata. In some smartphones, this mode is called "kids mode", and similarly allows you to choose which apps the little ones can play with and the blocking of phone calls.
Android Guest Mode, the features
Once guest mode is set on Android, the screen unlock settings that are set on the main profile are dropped. In this way, the guest will be able to use all the apps we have given him access to, without the need to enter PIN, unlock sequences or even the fingerprint. Your smartphone will be completely free, but your privacy will remain well guarded.
The account you create shares system options, app updates, active Wi-Fi networks, and even Bluetooth with your primary account, so you won't need to log in again. All messages, files, emails, music, or even videos, documents and photos will not be shared. Every time you switch to guest mode, you'll be asked to configure it, setting up apps with free access. Messages, whether SMS or through chat apps, can neither be received nor sent. Calls, on the other hand, can be unblocked or filtered based on a selection of contacts from which you can both receive and make them.
Even those who use the phone as a guest can have their privacy guaranteed: the history of activities performed in this mode is not recorded, so the phone's owner won't be able to see what has been searched for or done once they return to the main profile mode.