I tried to take a screenshot with my Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra this morning. Instead of capturing the screen, I was greeted with the message, "Unable to take a screenshot due to a security policy." If you've also encountered this, you may be wondering what's causing the error. Here are the top 6 ways to fix the "Unable to take a screenshot due to a security policy" error on Android.
Well, certain screens cannot be captured on Android. This includes some banking apps, streaming apps, and more. With banking apps, there's a risk of your private information being leaked via a screenshot. And with streaming apps like Netflix, hacking is a major threat. Therefore, these apps don't allow you to take screenshots.
However, there are some workarounds you can use to circumvent the “Cannot take screenshots due to app restrictions” error.
1. Enable screenshots in Chrome's incognito mode
Android prevents taking screenshots while using Incognito mode in Chrome. Therefore, if you try to take a screenshot, you'll see the message "Unable to take screenshot; the page contains an error with your personal information." But don't worry. You can bypass the issue and enable screenshots in Incognito mode by following these steps.
Step 1: Open Chrome On your phone. Type chrome :/ / flags In the address bar and press the key Enter.
Step 2: Find the screenshot using the search bar. Under the Incognito screenshot result, select the drop-down menu that says Default. Click on Maybe.
Step 3: Then press the . button RebootThis will restart Chrome and change the selected setting.
You should now be able to take a screenshot in Incognito mode when using Google Chrome.
2. Remove device administrator
If your Android device was issued to you by a school or company, they may have policies in place that prevent taking screenshots. This policy may also be enforced if you add a company account to your phone or if your company's app is set as an administrator.
You'll either need to talk to your IT department or remove any third-party apps with administrator rights from your phone. Here's how to do it.
Step 1: Open an app Settings Go to a section “Security and privacy.” Then head to Other security settings.
Step 2: Click on Device administrator appsIf you see an app you don't recognize here, turn off the toggle next to it.
Now, try to take a screenshot and the process should be done.
3. Close certain applications
As we mentioned at the beginning, some apps don't allow you to take screenshots for privacy reasons. Sometimes, if these apps are running in the background, you may not be able to take screenshots of other screens as well. So, close any of these banking or live streaming apps from your recent apps list and then try taking a screenshot.
4. Record your screen
Although some apps may not allow you to take a screenshot, they may not have any restrictions.Record your screenSo, try using a screen recorder on your phone to capture the screen. You can then take a screenshot of the desired page recording.
5. Take a screenshot in the recent apps list
Now here's a clever little trick. If you can't take a screenshot within an app, simply exit it. Then open the Recents tray. Here, you'll see a small preview of the app. Take a screenshot of this page.
You can then crop the screenshot and select just the app portion. It's worth noting that this trick only works for certain apps. We've noticed that some apps tend to block the screen, even in the recent apps list, to prevent sensitive information from being displayed.
6. Take a screenshot of your phone.
Now, this is an absolute last resort. If you have a secondary phone with you, your last option is to take a screenshot of the screen you want to capture using your other phone's camera. In some apps that don't allow you to take a screenshot or record the screen, this is your only option.
Once you've clicked a photo on the other phone, you can share it with yourself either via a third-party app or you can simply upload it to Google Photos so it's synced across all your devices.
Error-free screenshot
Imagine you see something interesting and want to share it with your friends. You press the key combination to take a screenshot, but you only get the error "Unable to take screenshot due to security policy." Now, that's a big problem. However, don't worry, as you can follow the steps above to find a workaround for the inability to take a screenshot due to security policy on Android.
