ANDROID owners have been warned they may lose the ability to pay for things with their smartphone next month.
Google Wallet is used by millions daily to shop and travel.
The firm routinely upgrades gadgets and tech with newer features behind the scenes – and this usually means older devices get left behind.
And the latest shake-up to Google Wallet will result in just that.
Starting from June 10, your device will need to run Android 9 or higher to continue using Google Wallet.
After this date, the popular service will no longer work for you.
Android 9 – also known as Android Pie – was released back in 2018 so the vast majority of people should be unaffected.
Anyone using a previous version – such as Android 8 or less – will need to upgrade the software to continue using Google Wallet.
Your device may work with Android 9 in which case it’s quite a painless software upgrade.
However, anyone with an aged smartphone no longer eligible for free Android software upgrades, it’ll mean they have to buy a brand new phone.
It’s also worth pointing out that Android 8 has been unsupported by Google since October 2021, so your device should have been updated long ago to keep it safe from hackers.
“To help keep Wallet features such as tap to pay transactions more secure, we must be able to send security updates to your device,” Google wrote on a support website.
“Security updates aren’t available for Android versions below 9.”
Anyone with an older Wear OS smartwatch will be affected too.
You’ll now need Wear OS 2.x or higher to keep using Google Wallet.
If you’re unsure what version of Android your smartphone runs, follow these simple steps:
Get the most out of your Android smartphone with these little-known hacks:
