- Location history data in Google Maps will soon be stored directly on user devices.
- Google itself will no longer have access to the data.
Google is making some changes in Google Maps that will increase user privacy.
Data from the Timeline feature in Google Maps, which is controlled by the Location History setting and keeps a record of routes and trips users have taken, will soon be stored directly on users’ devices instead of by Google.
That means Google itself will no longer have access to user location history data. And by extension, neither will law enforcement, which has often requested user location data from Google — for example, through “geofence” orders, which request data about every user who was near a specific place at a specific time.
Google has come under increasing pressure to stop collecting user location data, especially since Roe v. Wade was overturned. Location data, along with internet search history and even messaging history can be used as criminal evidence against individuals who get an abortion in states where abortion is illegal.
42 Democrats from the US House and Senate signed a letter last May addressed to Google CEO Sundar Pichai urging the company to stop collecting and retaining user location information.
“Google’s current practice of collecting and retaining extensive records of cell phone location data will allow it to become a tool for far-right extremists looking to crack down on people seeking reproductive health care,” the letter read.
Last July, Google announced it would delete the location history data of users who visited abortion clinics, drug treatment centers, domestic violence shelters, weight loss clinics, and other sensitive health-related locations. The company said that if its systems identified that a user had visited one of these sensitive locations, it would then delete the entry from that user’s location history “soon after they visit.”
Now this control is back in the hands of individual users.
Google told Business Insider that the update is part of a larger effort by the company to increase user privacy and give individuals more control over their data, pointing to other tools like auto-delete and Incognito Mode. It says the response to the Location History update has been positive.
The Location History setting is turned off by default in Google Maps, but here’s how to find it in the app, toggle it on or off, and delete specific entry:
1) Click on the icon in the top right corner of the screen.
2) Click on “Your data in Maps.”
3) Scroll down to “Location History.”
Here you can turn the Timeline feature and your location history on or off, and change your backup and auto-delete settings.
Clicking on “See & delete activity” will allow you to see any location history that’s already been saved in Google Maps and give you the option to delete specific entries.
