New Tricks Daily

Spam calls are one of the most annoying parts of owning a phone — the unknown number at lunchtime, the "your package is stuck" recording, the silent call that hangs up. The good news: Android already has free tools to stop most of them, and your carrier probably does too. The short answer: turn on spam filtering in your Phone app, switch on Call Screen if you have a Pixel, and enable your carrier's free spam blocker . Together, those three steps stop most spam before your phone even rings. Method 1: Turn On Spam Filtering in Phone by Google Most Android phones use Phone by Google as the default dialler, and it has a free built-in spam filter. It works in two parts: it warns you about calls it thinks are spam, and it can send suspected spam calls to voicemail so your phone never rings. Here is how to turn it on: Open the Phone app on your Android phone. Tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner, then tap Settings . Tap Caller ID and spam (on some phones it...

Knowing how to hide apps on Android is useful for lots of everyday reasons: keeping banking and work apps away from curious eyes, hiding a game from the kids, or just tidying a cluttered home screen. The good news is that you do not need to download a sketchy third-party app to do it. Samsung, Google Pixel, OnePlus and Xiaomi all ship built-in ways to hide apps, and every Android phone can disable preinstalled apps too. One important warning first: hiding an app is not the same as locking it, and it is not the same as deleting it . Some methods only remove the icon — the app keeps running. Others put the app behind a real lock. This guide explains which method does what, so you pick the right one for your phone. Method 1: Hide Apps on Samsung (Hide Apps + Secure Folder) Samsung gives you two built-in options, and they do very different jobs. Hide apps from the home and app screens This is the quickest way to tidy up. It only removes the icon — the app stays installed and ke...

Have you ever noticed a small green dot next to someone's profile photo in Instagram messages? That dot means the person is active right now. Instagram shows the same dot on your profile too, along with information like "Active 10 minutes ago". If you would rather keep your online timing private, you can turn this off in less than a minute. Turning off Active Status hides the green dot next to your profile photo. What Is Active Status on Instagram? Active Status is a small privacy setting inside Instagram. When it is on: People you follow and message can see a green dot when you are using Instagram. They can also see when you were last active, for example "Active 1 hour ago". This shows in your direct messages inbox. When you turn it off, nobody can see your green dot or your last active time. It is a simple way to use Instagram in peace, without feeling watched. How to Turn Off Active Status on Instagram Follow these steps on your Android phone: Open Instagram ...

Introduction Your photo gallery is often the first thing someone sees when they borrow your phone. Family photos, personal documents, and private pictures all sit together in one grid. Google Photos has a free built-in solution: the Locked Folder. Photos moved there disappear from your main gallery and can only be opened with your phone's screen lock. Locked Folder keeps private photos out of your main gallery. What Is the Locked Folder? The Locked Folder is a private space inside the Google Photos app. Photos and videos moved there: Do not appear in your main photo grid, search results, albums, or Memories. Cannot be opened without your phone's PIN, pattern, or fingerprint. Are not shown to other apps that can normally see your photos. It is not a separate app and costs nothing — it is part of Google Photos on Android. How to Set Up Locked Folder Open Google Photos and tap "Library" at the bottom. Tap "Utilities", then tap "Locked Folder". Tap ...

Introduction Not every story is for everyone. Sometimes you want to share a personal moment, a family photo, or a joke with just a few trusted people — not your whole follower list. Instagram's Close Friends feature does exactly that. You pick a small list once, and then you can share any story with only those people. A green star means the story is only for Close Friends. What Is the Close Friends List? Close Friends is a private list inside Instagram. You choose who is on it, and only those people can see stories you share to Close Friends. Other followers will not see the story at all, and they cannot see who is on your list. You can change the list at any time, and Instagram does not notify anyone when you add or remove them. How to Create Your Close Friends List Open Instagram and go to your profile. Tap the three-line menu at the top right. Tap "Close Friends". Search for people and tap "Add" next to the ones you want. Tap "Done" to save. Pick on...

Introduction Sometimes you hand your phone to a friend or a family member to show them a photo, and you do not want them to accidentally open a private conversation. WhatsApp has a built-in feature for exactly this situation: Chat Lock. Once you lock a chat, it moves out of your main chat list and can only be opened with your fingerprint or phone lock. No extra app is needed, and the feature is completely free. Chat Lock keeps selected chats behind your fingerprint. What Is WhatsApp Chat Lock? Chat Lock is a privacy feature inside WhatsApp. When you lock a chat: The chat moves into a separate "Locked chats" folder. Its messages and the sender's name are hidden from notifications. Opening it needs your fingerprint, face unlock, or phone PIN — whichever screen lock you use. The chat is not deleted or archived. It works normally once unlocked. This is useful for personal chats, work conversations, or any chat you simply want to keep private on a shared phone. How to Lock a C...

Sometimes you want to share a Story with most of your followers, but not with one or two specific people. Maybe it is a colleague, a relative, or someone you know personally, and you would rather keep that Story private from them for now. The good news is that Instagram gives you a simple, built-in way to do this. You do not need to block anyone, and you do not need to unfollow them. You can simply hide your Story from specific people, and they will never be told about it. Hide your Instagram Story from specific people without blocking them. What Happens When You Hide Your Story from Someone? Before we look at the steps, it helps to understand exactly what this setting does — and what it does not do. The people you select will not be able to see your Stories. They can still see your regular posts, your Reels, and your profile, just like before. They are not notified that you hid your Story from them. Instagram does not send any alert about this. They can still message you and interact ...

There are posts you no longer want on your profile — an old photo, a post from a different phase of your life, or something that just does not match your feed anymore. Deleting it feels permanent, because it is: your likes and comments go with it, forever. Archiving is the better option. It hides the post from everyone, keeps it safe, and lets you bring it back anytime you want. What Does Archiving Do? When you archive a post, it disappears from your public profile grid immediately. Nobody else can see it, like it, or comment on it while it is archived. Your likes and comments are preserved, and you can restore the post at any time — it returns intact. Think of it this way: archiving puts a post in a drawer, while deleting throws it in the bin. How to Archive an Instagram Post 1. Open Instagram and go to your profile. 2. Open the post you want to hide. 3. Tap the three dots (•••) at the top-right of the post. 4. Tap Archive. The post is now hidden from your profile. Only you can see it...

Have you ever lost an important address, a bank detail, or a meeting time inside a long WhatsApp chat? Scrolling back through hundreds of messages takes time, and screenshots get lost in your gallery. WhatsApp has a simple built-in solution for this: starred messages. When you star a message, WhatsApp saves it in one special list. You can open that list any time and find the message in seconds, no matter how old the chat is. It is free, it works on Android, and it takes only a few seconds to use. Star the messages that matter, and find them later without scrolling through long chats. What Are Starred Messages? Starred messages are simply messages you have marked as important. A small star appears next to them in the chat, and WhatsApp also collects all of them in one place. You can star almost anything: a text message, a photo, a voice note, a location, or a document. Starring a message does not send anything to the other person, and it does not notify them. It is only your own private...

Do you have WhatsApp chats that grow longer every day — old forwards, daily greetings, and hundreds of photos you will never look at again? WhatsApp has a simple, genuine feature for this: disappearing messages. When you turn it on, new messages in a chat delete themselves automatically after the time you choose. This is useful for everyday chats, but it is not a magic privacy tool. This guide explains how it really works, how to turn it on, and what it cannot do. Disappearing messages keep everyday chats clean by deleting new messages automatically. What are disappearing messages? Disappearing messages is a built-in WhatsApp setting. Once it is on for a chat, every new message sent in that chat disappears after 24 hours, 7 days, or 90 days — whichever period you pick. The timer starts when the message is sent, not when the other person reads it. You can turn it on for a single chat, or as a default for all new chats you start. Turning it on does not delete your old messages. Only mess...

Not every story is meant for everyone who follows you. Some moments are for your best friends, your family, or a small circle you trust. That is exactly what Instagram Close Friends is for: a private list of people who can see selected stories, while everyone else simply does not see them at all. Illustration: Close Friends lets you share stories with only a small, trusted circle. What Is Instagram Close Friends? Close Friends is a list you create inside Instagram. When you share a story with Close Friends, only the people on that list can view it. Other followers will not see the story, and they will not be told that a Close Friends story exists. The people on your list will know they are on it, because your story will show a green ring around your profile picture instead of the usual pink and orange one. How to Create Your Close Friends List — Step by Step Follow these steps in the Instagram app: Open Instagram and go to your profile. Tap the three-line menu in the top-right corner. ...

Not every awkward Instagram interaction needs a dramatic unfollow. Sometimes you just want some quiet, sometimes you want a firm boundary, and sometimes you want someone gone for good. That is exactly what Mute, Restrict and Block are for — and choosing the wrong one can cause more drama than the problem itself. In this guide, you will learn what each option actually does, what the other person can and cannot see, and which one to use in real situations. What Is Mute on Instagram? Mute is the quietest option. When you mute someone, you stop seeing their posts, stories and notes, but you stay connected. They can still see your posts, message you, and they will not be told that you muted them. Use Mute when you like the person but not their content — for example, a friend who posts twenty stories a day, or a page that has become too noisy. Nothing changes for them, and nothing awkward happens for you. Illustration: Restricting an account limits what that person can see and do, without un...

Sometimes you want to share a photo for a quick moment — not keep it floating in someone's gallery forever. That's exactly what WhatsApp's View Once feature is for. It lets you send a photo or video that disappears the moment the receiver opens it. Let's look at how it works, how to send one, and — most importantly — the safety rules most people skip. What is View Once? View Once is a WhatsApp feature for sending photos and videos that vanish after being opened one time. The receiver taps the photo, looks at it, and when they close it, it's gone — not saved to their gallery, not stored in the chat. On your side, you'll see an "Opened" status once they've viewed it, so you know the photo was seen. This is different from a normal photo: a normal photo stays in the chat forever and the other person can save, forward, or share it anytime. A View Once photo gets exactly one view. How to send a View Once photo or video Sending one takes four taps: ...