Meta Bolsters Messenger with Advanced Safe Browsing
Meta has announced enhanced scam protection features for its Messenger app, expanding the Safe Browsing system launched in October 2025. The update introduces an optional “Advanced Browsing Protection” setting designed to shield users from malicious links in direct messages and calls, addressing the growing threat of online fraud.
Internet scams continue to escalate, with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center reporting U.S. losses exceeding $50 billion between 2020 and 2024, including more than $16 billion in 2024 alone. Given Messenger’s massive global user base and its end-to-end encrypted chats, the platform has become a prime target for scammers who exploit private conversations to share phishing links, fake investment schemes, romance scams, and other deceptive content.
The original Safe Browsing feature relies on on-device machine learning models to detect and warn about potentially harmful links without compromising encryption or sending message contents to Meta’s servers. The new Advanced Browsing Protection builds on this foundation by incorporating a continually updated watchlist of millions of additional suspicious websites.
To balance expanded coverage with user privacy, Meta developed a hybrid approach: core detection remains on-device for speed and encryption integrity, while the broader, frequently refreshed database is queried securely from Meta’s servers. Engineers implemented privacy-preserving techniques to prevent exposure of individual user data or chat details during these checks. When a link matches known threats, Messenger displays a clear warning before users can proceed, creating critical friction that encourages second thoughts.
The company emphasizes that these safeguards work seamlessly within end-to-end encrypted conversations, ensuring no message content is decrypted or reviewed by Meta. Users can enable Advanced Browsing Protection in Messenger settings, with the option to toggle it based on their security preferences.
