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GoogleGranted patentSecurity & privacyInterest 6/10

Google patents device lock that only unlocks for the new owner

This patent describes a security mode for computing devices that locks them when they are being sold or given away. The device stays locked until it detects specific signals, such as a new owner's location, network connection, or biometric data, proving the right person has it.

Why it mattersIt offers a built-in way to prevent theft during the handover of a used device, ensuring the new owner can access it while keeping it locked from strangers.

In the filing’s own words

Device-based anti-theft and recovery techniques for computing devices are disclosed herein. An example system includes one or more processors that execute instructions to receive, from a transferor that intends to convey the computing device to a transferee, one or more signal parameters that, if satisfied, permit the computing device to deactivate a protected mode of operation; activate, during a normal mode of operation, the protected mode, wherein the computing device disables one or more functions that are enabled during the normal mode of operation while the protected mode is activated; receive, during the protected mode, a user input from a potential transferee corresponding to a wake function of the computing device; and responsive to receiving the user input, determine, based on a comparison between one or more signals associated with the computing device and the one or more signal parameters, whether the computing device is in possession of the transferee.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A method comprising: receiving, by a computing device and from a transferor that intends to convey the computing device to a transferee, one or more signal parameters that, if satisfied, permit the computing device to deactivate a protected mode of operation, the signal parameters associated with the transferee and specifying one or more of: a geographic location, a network identifier, a network address, a network profile, a device identifier, a threshold distance, a time window, or biometric information; activating, by the computing device and during a normal mode of operation, the protected mode, wherein the computing device disables one or more functions that are enabled during the normal mode of operation while the protected mode is activated; receiving, by the computing device and during the protected mode, a user input from a potential transferee, the user input corresponding to a wake function of the computing device; responsive to receiving the user input, determining, by the computing device and based on a comparison between one or more signals detected by the computing device and the one or more signal parameters, whether the computing device is in possession of the transferee; responsive to determining the computing device is in the possession of the transferee, deactivating, by the computing device, the protected mode of operation; and responsive to determining the computing device is not in the possession of the transferee, maintaining, by the computing device, the protected mode of operation.

Facts

Company
Google (Google LLC)
Official title
Device-based anti-theft and recovery system
Patent number
US12748898B1
Application number
19091165
Filed
Mar 26, 2025
Granted
Sep 29, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

G06F 21/88 Physics & computingG06F 21/6218 Physics & computing
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.