YouTube on Android now tells you when it detects a screenshot

You’re watching a video, you take a quick screenshot of a funny moment or an interesting frame, and suddenly a small notification pops up at the bottom of your screen. “YouTube detected this screenshot.” Wait, what?​

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. A popular Reddit post has a lot of folks speculating and sharing their thoughts after one confused viewer asked how this would affect them and whether they should be worried.

The short answer is no, but the feature itself is worth understanding.

What’s actually happening here

YouTube has started using Android’s screenshot detection API to notify users when they capture their screen. This isn’t the app blocking your screenshots or preventing you from saving content. Instead, it’s just acknowledging that a screenshot happened. Think of it less as surveillance and more as the app being aware of user actions within its interface.​

Here’s a screenshot I captured on a Pixel 8 showing the alert:

Android 14 introduced this privacy-focused screenshot detection feature, giving apps the ability to register callbacks when users press the hardware button combination for screenshots. YouTube appears to be one of the first major apps to implement this system-wide, though the rollout seems gradual since not everyone is seeing it yet.​

Why would YouTube do this?

The most likely reason is engagement tracking. Apps like Reddit have been doing something similar for years, though Reddit takes it a step further by asking if you want to share the post instead. YouTube’s implementation is more passive; it simply lets you know it registered the action. This data probably helps the platform understand how users interact with content and which videos drive the most screenshot activity.

Some users in the discussion thread speculated this could be tied to advertising metrics, showing advertisers that viewers are engaged enough to capture moments from videos. Others pointed out that, unlike streaming services such as Netflix or Disney+, YouTube isn’t blocking screenshots or turning them into black screens, which would be far more intrusive.

Should you be concerned?

Not really. The notification is just that — a notification. Your screenshot still saves normally, and there’s no indication that YouTube is taking any action based on this detection. Several users confirmed they’ve been taking screenshots regularly with no issues beyond seeing the pop-up message.

If the notification bothers you, some users mentioned that YouTube ReVanced Extended has a dedicated patch to disable these kinds of detection features. But for most people, it’s just a minor reminder that they’ll get used to seeing.