Gmail could be borrowing this useful Apple feature
For online services, your email address pretty much acts as your primary identification. You use it to sign into a variety of services. Unfortunately, due to hacks and database breaches over the years, email addresses have been leaked and it has led to spam. Thankfully, Google could be working on a new Gmail feature that allows users to create aliases.
According to a report from Android Authority, an APK teardown of the 24.45.33 version of Google Play Services has revealed Google’s potential plan to combat spam. This comes in a feature that, for now, is being referred to as “Shielded Email”. Basically what it does is it allows users to create email aliases in Gmail so that when emails are sent to that alias address, it will be forwarded to your actual email.
This means that in the event that you start receiving spam, it will be sent to the alias instead of your primary account, thus keeping your inbox clean and clear. Gmail already does a good job at filtering spam, but this could take things one step further. If this feature sounds familiar, it is because Apple actually already has something similar in place.
When users create an account online, more often than not there will be the option to sign up using your Apple ID. Apple then gives users the option of either using their actual email or using an alias to hide your real email. This is designed more as a privacy feature rather than spam protection, but it gets the job done.
We’re not sure when (or if) Google plans on implementing this new feature, so we’ll have to wait and see.