Motorola to deliver privacy-focused phones by offering GrapheneOS as alternative to Android

Motorola has announced a collaboration with GrapheneOS. According to parent company Lenovo, this “long-term partnership” is intended to offer GrapheneOS as an alternative to standard Android on selected Motorola smartphones, with a primary focus on strengthening privacy and security.

GrapheneOS is positioned as an open-source operating system built on the Android Open Source Project, ensuring compatibility with most conventional Android apps. However, it doesn’t come with any Google Services by default and adds many additional security enhancements, including the ability to manage permissions for network and sensor access on a phone. It can automatically redact sensitive information in screen captures, and USB-C ports can be disabled or limited to charging only to prevent attacks via compromised cables.

GrapheneOS may also be an appealing option for smartphones shared by multiple employees within a company, as it supports up to 32 user profiles compared with Android’s limit of four. Furthermore, Motorola plans to introduce a feature that automatically removes private metadata, such as GPS coordinates, from photos. This capability is also rolling out to the Motorola Signature through an update for the Moto Secure app. Motorola has yet to confirm which models will be the first to ship with GrapheneOS.