Google - Policy Change
Executive Summary
Google is introducing separate privacy controls for Search services and Google Play, splitting the previous "Web & App Activity" setting into "Search Services History" and "Personalized Recommendations." Users who already have Web & App Activity enabled will automatically have the new media-saving feature turned on, which can store images, files, audio, and video from interactions with Google Search, Maps, Shopping, and other services. The changes give users more granular control over what hi...
What Happened
Google announced on June 24, 2026, that it is splitting its Web & App Activity privacy control into two separate settings: Search Services History and Personalized Recommendations. The change affects Google Search, Maps, Shopping, Hotels, Flights, Translate, and News services. Importantly, users who currently have Web & App Activity enabled will automatically have a new media-saving feature turned on, which can store images, files, audio, and video from their interactions with these services.
Who Is Affected
All Google users who have Web & App Activity enabled are affected, as they will automatically have the new media-saving feature activated without requiring opt-in. The change applies globally to anyone using Google Search services including Maps, Shopping, Hotels, Flights, Translate, and News. Users will see these changes appear in their Google Account settings over the coming days.
Why It Matters
This change represents a significant expansion of what Google collects by default, moving from primarily text-based search history to automatically capturing multimedia content including images, audio, and video files. While Google frames this as providing more granular control, the automatic opt-in for existing users means many people may unknowingly have their media interactions saved unless they actively review and adjust the new settings. The shift reflects Google's broader move toward multimodal search experiences like Lens, but increases the volume and sensitivity of data collected.
What You Should Do
Check your Google Account settings immediately to review the new Search Services History and Personalized Recommendations controls. If you do not want Google saving images, files, audio, and video from your searches, manually turn off the media-saving option within Search Services History. You can access these settings through your Google Account privacy page or by visiting myactivity.google.com, where the new controls should now be visible.
Summary generated from verified sources and reviewed before publication. How we summarize.