Google may have made deleting location data slightly easier for you
Note: This post was updated in 2023 to update the current method of deleting your Google location date.
It sounds unlike Google, right? Well, I guess it's time to sell privacy for Google. The internet giant has introduced new controls which will automatically clear your data after a particular period of time.
As you may have heard, the company launched a new feature last month which allowed the users to delete private data automatically after either three months or eighteen months. But this feature was only limited to the web and app activity but Google has now confirmed it is being extended to location data as well.
If you didn’t know before, Google tracks everything you do online — from search history to the websites you’ve been on is all kept safe on their servers. The users do have the option to check their Activity log and delete it but for those who didn’t know of this, it might come as a shock to see how much Google already has on you.
For most users, it’s rather inconvenient having to re-enter the locations and data again in the apps when Google does not automatically ‘remember’ it has been cleared but I’d say this is not that big of a cost you should consider paying for your privacy.
Google said this setting will start rolling out for the iOS and Android apps users while there’s no word as to when this will be available on the web.
Here's how you do it (AI generated but checked for facts):
To delete your Google location data, you can follow these steps:
Using a Web Browser:
Go to your Google Account.
Click on "Data & personalization" on the left-hand menu.
Under "Activity controls," click on "Location History."
Click on "Manage activity," and then you can choose to delete individual locations or all of your location history.
Using the Google Maps app:
Open the Google Maps app.
Tap your profile picture.
Tap "Your data in Maps."
Tap "See and delete your location history," then you can choose to delete individual locations or all of your location history.
By following these steps, you can effectively manage and delete your Google location data.