Android's native Chrome browser is one of the mobile operating system's best features However, the mobile version of Chrome does not offer the same level of privacy and security controls as the web version

Google has added the safety check feature found in the desktop version of Chrome to Canary, an experimental version of its Chrome app for Android, Techdows reports

Adding a feature to Canary, the "cutting edge" of Chrome development, does not necessarily mean that the feature will make it into the stable version of Chrome

Nor does it indicate when the feature will make it to the stable build, as it must go through the Developer and Beta builds However, it is usually a good sign

Safety Check, introduced to the desktop version of Chrome in May, checks the browser itself for security issues It runs locally on the device This is different from Google Security Checkup, which covers your entire Google account and checks all connected devices and logins over the Internet

The Security Checkup option is currently buried under the Settings section of the latest Canary build of Chrome for Android To access it, one must go to the browser's "Flags" page, search for "Safety Checkup", enable it, and add it to the settings menu

Once enabled, this feature can be used to effectively audit the safety of your browsing in Chrome

In other words, it scans for potentially compromised passwords, scans to see if Chrome's "Safe Browsing" feature is enabled, and checks to see if the Android device has the latest version of Chrome

This may not seem like a big move, but it is a step in the right direction toward making Android a more secure mobile operating system

You can try out the Safety Check feature by downloading the Canary Chrome browser from the Google Play Store, but it should be noted that the Canary build is not as stable as the full Chrome app due to its experimental nature Therefore, use with caution