Millions of Windows users linking their PCs to their phones are in for a nasty surprise when they upgrade to Android 15. The Phone Link app that makes it work has fallen foul of one of Google's new security enhancements. "Certain notifications are now hidden," they will be warned, "for your protection."

Spotted by Mishaal Rahman and shared on X, the update is already prompting complaints. "I confirm that this is very annoying," read one reply, "as I heavily rely on notification mirroring for my 2FA codes. There should be an option to whitelist certain apps to ensure uninterrupted access to critical notifications."

As Windows Central explains, "Windows Phone Link is one of Windows 11's best features, but with the latest Android 15 update, it's about to get a little less useful. With Android 15, Google has implemented a new behavior that automatically redacts sensitive notifications from being sent to 'untrusted' notification listeners, and this will affect Phone Link on certain devices."

Microsoft has confirmed this, warning that "Phone Link no longer shows notifications that contain sensitive information for your protection." This affects Phone Link apps installed from Play Store and not those preinstalled on devices. This looks like good news for Samsung users and bad news for Pixel users.

But in a world where Microsoft promises you can "make and take calls, reply to texts, check and dismiss notifications -- all from your Windows PC without even taking your phone out of your pocket," this latest change is something of a disaster.

Per Android Authority, "Android 15 changes things by designating notifications with two-factor authentication codes as 'sensitive' and only allowing 'trusted' Notification Listener services to read them. Any 'untrusted' Notification Listener service that tries to read notifications with two-factor authentication codes will simply be given a message stating, 'sensitive notification content hidden'."

It is, says Tech Radar, "a moment that reminds us that Google and Microsoft are indeed two different companies... You can still check messages, manage apps, and make calls. It's just that you'll need to physically check your phone for some sensitive messages after installing Android 15, if you don't already."

Google had warned that this was coming, explaining that "Android 15 introduces robust measures to combat one-time passcode (OTP) fraud and to protect the user's sensitive content... Key enhancements include redacting OTPs from notifications accessible to untrusted apps, hiding notifications during screenshare, and securing app activities when OTPs are posted. These changes aim to keep the user's sensitive content safe from unauthorized actors."

While no-one had expected this would impact something as fundamental as the link between a user's phone and PC, the masking of OTPs is critical. Warning after warning highlights Android's vulnerability to apps that trick users into granting them permission to read texts, and which then steal those codes.