Google Connects Phone Numbers Across Signed-in Accounts

WHO:

Mashable - Google is linking users’ phone numbers to their signed-in accounts.

Engadget - The accounts affected are Google accounts signed in on an Android phone, including accounts added later.

WHAT:

Mashable - Google has a setting that links a user’s phone number across signed-in accounts; Mashable says the setting can be opted out of and may compromise privacy.

Engadget - Adding a new SIM to an Android phone links its phone number to all Google accounts on the phone.

Engadget - Any new Google accounts added to the phone inherit the phone number.

HOW:

Mashable - The phone-number linking is controlled by an opt-out Google setting.

Engadget - The number is linked to accounts when a new SIM is added, and is also associated with accounts subsequently added to the device.

(UPDATED October 25, 2026 17:06 UTC)

Google is linking phone numbers to Google accounts signed in on Android phones, including accounts added later. When a new SIM is inserted, its number can be connected to every Google account already on the device. Any Google account added afterward may inherit that same phone number, so the association can extend to accounts the user signs in to later. The process is controlled by a Google setting that opts users in by default, according to the reported details. Users can opt out by changing that setting. The feature may raise privacy concerns because one phone number can be associated with multiple accounts on the same device. The linking applies to accounts on the Android phone, rather than just the first account used to set it up.