Google Cloud fraud defense, the next evolution of reCAPTCHA

The requirements for the mobile devices are listed here: https://support.google.com/recaptcha/answer/16609652

So it seems that you will need a modern Android device with Google Play Services installed or a modern iPhone/iPad to be allowed to browse the web in the future.

No mention of device integrity verification yet, but the writing is on the wall.

Google building harder walls against bots while simultaneously building AI agents that need to get through them is peak 2026.

Google clearly wants only Google approved models to traverse the web.

How are people stopping bots reliably?

The site doesn't mention this. But, are they locking down QR code auth for only safetynet authenticated devices and with mobile number verification?

The fact that mobile devices are now mandatory to prove "humanness" means that Google no longer trusts desktop/open platforms anymore.

Why can't an AI scan the QR code? Just fire up an emulator if necessary

Google and the reCAPTCHA network aren't even that good with fraud prevention. You would think being literally omniscient over the whole internet would make it trivial to catch account takeovers, and Gmail has a proven track record at resisting account takeover, but when we tried to integrate their fraud signals, they were worthless, worse than the rest of the industry, worse than our homegrown trash from a decade ago.

Because Google doesn't actually care about preventing fraud, they just want the data you feed them and the fraud feedback you provide. It's all take, no mutual business.