A key, a green dot and a blue dot in your Android status bar each signal something about your privacy. Here is what a dozen common icons mean.
The tiny icons along the top of an Android phone say more than most people realize. A small key means a VPN, a privacy tool, is connected. A green dot means an app is using your camera or microphone right now. A blue dot, mostly on Google Pixel phones, means an app is using your location.
The colored dots appear in the upper-right corner of the screen. Google added them more recently. On some phones, a small camera or mic sits inside the dot. Depending on the brand, the mic indicator may be orange instead of green.
The VPN key works the other way around. It shows up when you connect to a VPN and disappears when you disconnect. If you never turned on a VPN and see a key, that is worth a closer look.
The vertical bars show signal strength. The more bars are filled in, the stronger the signal. An R above the bars means you are roaming, which is when your phone connects through a network other than your own. Small letters such as H, H+, 3G, LTE, 4G and 5G show the type of cellular connection. H or H+ is a slightly faster version of 3G.
A B-shaped symbol means Bluetooth is on. An N-shaped symbol means NFC is on. Pixel phones never show the NFC icon, even though NFC is on by default unless you turn it off. A location pin stands for GPS, and an airplane means flight mode. Both can look different from brand to brand.
The battery icon shows how much charge is left. A plus inside it can mean battery saver is on. Phone makers, Google included, hide the battery percentage by default. You can turn it on with a toggle in your phone's battery settings.
Icons can look different depending on the phone brand and the software it adds on top of Android, but their meaning stays the same. If a strange new icon appears and you cannot place it, do not ignore it. The quickest fix is to take a screenshot and look up the image online. Even small changes, like a new exclamation mark, can point to a problem.
Glance at the status bar now and then, and look up any icon you do not recognize, especially a green dot, a blue dot or a key.
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