An Overview of Google Voice

Google Voice is a service by Google that sets up a digital phone number that allows you to call and receive calls over the internet, rather than through regular phone methods. This allows you to have a U.S.-based phone number that is not connected to you, and allows you to use a digital phone that is not tied to any major phone providers.

You can answer calls on a web browser, and the system syncs together within Google’s extensive ecosystem. One thing to note is that Google Voice only works in the following countries: Canada, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the contiguous United States. This could limit to what extent you can use your Voice phone number. Another problem that might arise from the use of Google Voice is that a lot of multifactor authentication and banking portals do not work with Google Voice numbers due to its nature as a VOIP (Voice Over IP) number.

You will need to link a real phone number for registration and verification.

What Are Some Google Voice Security Features?

• Calls through Voice are encrypted in-transit and at rest
• Any data related to your activity, such as voicemails, is encrypted and stored within Google.
• Google Voice screens and blocks calls that are suspected to be from suspicious or harmful sources
• Google does not utilize the data from its Voice services to advertise or learn more about you. Instead the data, if used at all, uses the information from Voice to help improve the service as a whole.

Why Should You Use Google Voice?

• Voice is extremely secure due to encryption
• Protected under the Google security environment
• Automatic screening of spam calls
• Personal information is not used for advertising
• Completely free to use

Why Shouldn’t You Use Google Voice?

• Not an international service – only works in several countries
• Voice data is collected by Google
• Voice phone numbers might not work for banking or MFA
• Personal information is tied to Google account