Google Quietly Linked Your Phone Number Across Your Accounts, but You Can Stop It

Emily Long Emily Long Freelance Writer ExperienceEmily Long is a freelance writer based in Salt Lake City. After graduating from Duke University, she spent several years reporting on the federal workforce for Government Executive, a publication of Atlantic Media Company, in Washington, D.C. She has nearly a decade of experience as a freelancer covering tech (including issues related to security, privacy, and streaming) as well as personal finance and travel. In addition to Lifehacker, her work has been featured on Wirecutter, Tom’s Guide, and ZDNET. Emily has also worked as a travel guide around the U.S. and as a content editor. She has a masters in social work and is a licensed therapist in Utah. Read Full Bio October 22, 2026 Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google Credit: Chesnot / Contributor, Getty Images News via Getty Images Key Takeaways Google has been automatically connecting Android users' phone numbers to every Google account they are signed into on their devices. If you are logged into personal, work, and disposable accounts on your Android phone, Google may have silently verified and linked your number with all of them. You can disable automatic phone number verification and delete your number from your Google accounts. Table of Contents In recent weeks, Google has been automatically connecting Android users' phone numbers to every Google account they are signed into on their devices—without requesting consent to do so. This means that if you are logged into personal, work, and disposable accounts on your Android phone, Google may have silently verified and linked your number with all of them even if you've deliberately kept them separate. If you that's not something you want, there's a way to fix it.Google is automatically verifying Android users' phone numbersAs Android Authority reports, some Android users have recently received confirmation emails from an official Google address stating that their phone number has been verified. Google has required occasional phone number re-verification but appears to have updated its support documentation about a year ago to make this feature opt-out by default. As part of this process, Google also adds your phone number to all Google Accounts that are signed in on the device, including current accounts and phone numbers and any that are added or updated in the future. You can change your phone number verification settings on AndroidDisable automatic phone number verificationIf you have an Android device, you can disable automatic phone number verification, which should prevent Google from linking sign-in accounts together. You can find this toggle in your Settings app under Google or Google services and preferences > All Services > Privacy & Security > Phone number verification. (Note that the exact path may differ by device.) You should periodically check to ensure this toggle remains off. Delete associated numbers from accounts already linkedUpdating this setting does not disconnect phone numbers and Google accounts that have already been linked. You can find out which are which via your Google Account Personal Info page. Select your profile picture in the upper-right corner to go through each signed-in account and open the Phone section to select and delete any numbers you don't want associated. What do you think so far? Review your Security & sign-in settingsFinally, Malwarebytes advises scrolling down to the Usage section on the Phone page to view which services are listed as well as reviewing your Security & sign-in settings. If you added your phone number for two-step verification or to a separate app like Google Pay, deleting it from the Phone page won't remove it entirely from your account, and you'll need to update those settings separately. Automatic phone verification shouldn't be the culprit here, but it's useful to audit what your number is being used for and on which accounts if you want to keep things separate. Lifehacker has been a go-to source of tech help and life advice since 2005. Our mission is to offer reliable tech help and credible, practical, science-based life advice to help you live better. Our Mission Our Team Newsletter © 2001-2026 Ziff Davis, LLC., A ZIFF DAVIS COMPANY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Lifehacker is a federally registered trademark of Ziff Davis and may not be used by third parties without explicit permission. The display of third-party trademarks and trade names on this site does not necessarily indicate any affiliation or the endorsement of Lifehacker. If you click an affiliate link and buy a product or service, we may be paid a fee by that merchant.