Android 15 may have a major privacy feature, giving users the ability to selectively share their location, even with the cell carriers.

Location data is among the most prized data that companies and advertisers can leverage. While there are various third-party solutions to give users more control over their privacy, Google appears to preparing to give users direct control over their location data.

According to Android Authority, Android’s source code includes information regarding a new API that “updates the current user setting of sharing the location data. This value must be used by radio before honoring a network initiated location request for non emergency use cases. The radio shall ignore this setting during emergency call, emergency SMS or emergency call back modes and continue to provide the location information to the network initiated location requests.”

As the notes indicate, with the exception of emergency situations, it appears users will be able to change the setting to allow or disallow location sharing.

Android Authority rightly makes the point that this likely won’t stop carriers from determining a user’s approximate location, as they can see which towers the user’s phone is accessing. However, the feature will at least give users the ability to protect their precise location.