The policy describes what Google collects, why, and how you can manage, export and delete it
This Privacy Policy is Google's explanation of what information it collects, why it collects it, and how you can update, manage, export and delete that information. It is a general policy for Google's services, not a list of per-product details; product-specific privacy notices are listed separately later in the document.
Supporting quotations
This Privacy Policy is meant to help you understand what information we collect, why we collect it, and how you can update, manage, export, and delete your information.
Qualifications & exceptions
Applies to "our services" as described in the policy; the section "When this policy applies" sets the boundaries and excludes services with separate policies that do not incorporate it.
Not stated here
Per-product privacy notices and the Product Privacy Guide are linked but not supplied here, so their terms are not described.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
This version of the Google Privacy Policy is effective October 1, 2026
The page states that this version took effect on October 1, 2026. It points to archived versions and a downloadable PDF, which are links on the page and are not part of the text analyzed here.
Supporting quotations
Effective October 1, 2026
Qualifications & exceptions
Effective date as stated on the page for this United States English version.
Not stated here
The archived versions and the PDF are not supplied, so this analysis does not say how this version differs from earlier ones.
Data Access & Collection · Context
Google's services span its apps, platforms like Chrome and Android, and ad and analytics products on other sites
Google describes "our services" as three groups: Google apps, sites and devices (such as Search, YouTube and Google Home); platforms such as the Chrome browser and Android operating system; and products that are built into third-party apps and sites, such as ads, analytics and embedded Google Maps. So the policy reaches beyond Google-branded sites to Google products that run inside other companies' apps and sites.
Supporting quotations
Our services include:
Google apps, sites, and devices, like Search, YouTube, and Google Home
Platforms like the Chrome browser and Android operating system
Products that are integrated into third-party apps and sites, like ads, analytics, and embedded Google Maps
Qualifications & exceptions
The list is introduced with "include", so the named examples are not stated to be exhaustive.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
You can use many Google services signed out, and privacy settings decide whether some data is saved to your account
Creating a Google Account is optional for many services: Google says you can use many of them signed out, for example searching on Google or watching YouTube videos. Signing up lets you create and manage content such as email and photos or get more relevant search results. Across services you can adjust privacy settings, such as history and personalization controls, to choose whether some types of data are saved to your Google account and how Google uses it. Google also mentions private browsing, such as Chrome Incognito mode, as keeping your browsing private from other people who use your device.
Supporting quotations
you can sign up for a Google Account if you want to create and manage content like emails and photos, or see more relevant search results
you can use many Google services when you’re signed out or without creating an account at all, like searching on Google or watching YouTube videos
which helps keep your browsing private from other people who use your device
you can adjust your privacy settings (like history and personalization controls) to make choices about whether we save some types of data to your Google account and how we use it
Qualifications & exceptions
The Incognito statement is limited to other people who use your device; later the policy says third-party sites and apps that use Google services still share information with Google even in Incognito mode.
Using services signed out does not mean no data is collected: the policy says data not tied to an account is stored with identifiers tied to the browser, app or device.
Not stated here
Which specific services work signed out is not listed beyond the Search and YouTube examples.
Account & Service Control · Procedure
Google adds examples, videos and definitions, and gives a contact link for policy questions
Google says it added examples, explanatory videos and definitions of key terms to make the policy clearer, and that questions about the policy can be sent through a contact link on the page.
Supporting quotations
we’ve added examples, explanatory videos, and definitions for key terms
if you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, you can
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
What Google collects depends on how you use its services and how you manage your privacy controls
Google says it collects information to provide better services to all users, from basic needs such as your language to more complex ones such as which ads or YouTube videos you might find useful. It says that what it collects, and how it uses that information, depends on how you use its services and how you manage your privacy controls. The details of the categories follow in the rest of this section.
Supporting quotations
We collect information to provide better services to all our users
The information Google collects, and how that information is used, depends on how you use our services and how you manage your privacy controls.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google also collects data not tied to an account, stored against browser, app or device identifiers
Google collects and uses data that is not associated with your account. When you are not signed in, it stores the information with unique identifiers tied to the browser, application or device you use. It gives examples of the use: maintaining your preferences across browsing sessions, such as language, and deciding whether to show more relevant search results or ads based on your activity across devices.
Supporting quotations
Google also collects and uses data that is not associated with your account.
when you’re not signed in to a Google Account, we store the information we collect with unique identifiers tied to the browser, application, or device you’re using
maintain your preferences across browsing sessions, such as your preferred language or whether to show you more relevant search results or ads based on your activity across devices
You may also get customized search results even when you’re signed out.
Qualifications & exceptions
Elsewhere the policy says you may get customized search results even when signed out, and that signed-out search customization can be turned off.
Data tied to a device identifier is still stored and used; "not associated with your account" is not the same as no data kept.
Not stated here
The policy does not say here how long signed-out data is kept; retention is described generally in the retention section.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
When you are signed in, Google stores collected information with your account and treats it as personal information
When you are signed in, Google also collects information that it stores with your Google Account, and it says it treats that information as personal information.
Supporting quotations
When you’re signed in, we also collect information that we store with your Google Account, which we treat as personal information.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
Creating an account means giving your name and a password; phone number and payment details are optional
When you create a Google Account you provide personal information including your name and a password. You can also choose to add a phone number or payment information. Even without being signed in you might choose to give Google information, such as an email address to contact Google or to get updates. Elsewhere Google says a phone number you add can be used for different purposes across Google services depending on your settings, such as account recovery, helping people find and connect with you, and making ads more relevant.
Supporting quotations
When you create a Google Account, you provide us with personal information that includes your name and a password.
You can also choose to add a phone number or payment information to your account.
like an email address to communicate with Google or receive updates about our services
If you add your phone number to your account, it can be used for different purposes across Google services, depending on your settings.
help people find and connect with you, and make the ads you see more relevant to you
Qualifications & exceptions
Phone number and payment information are described as optional additions.
Phone-number uses depend on your settings, per the linked explanation.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google collects the content you create, upload or receive, including email, photos, docs and comments
Google says it collects the content you create, upload or receive from others when you use its services. Its examples are email you write and receive, photos and videos you save, documents and spreadsheets you create, and comments you make on YouTube videos.
Supporting quotations
We also collect the content you create, upload, or receive from others when using our services.
This includes things like email you write and receive, photos and videos you save, docs and spreadsheets you create, and comments you make on YouTube videos.
Qualifications & exceptions
"This includes things like" signals the examples are illustrative, not a complete list.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google collects device, browser and app details, including carrier and phone number, IP address and crash reports
Google collects information about the apps, browsers and devices you use to reach its services, which it says supports features such as automatic product updates and dimming your screen when the battery is low. The information includes unique identifiers, browser type and settings, device type and settings, operating system, mobile network information including carrier name and phone number, and application version number. It also collects how your apps, browsers and devices interact with its services, including IP address, crash reports, system activity, and the date, time and referrer URL of requests. This happens when a Google service on your device contacts Google servers, for example when you install an app from the Play Store or a service checks for updates. On an Android device with Google apps, the device periodically contacts Google servers with information such as device type and carrier name, crash reports and which apps you have installed, and, depending on device settings, other information about how you use the device.
Supporting quotations
We collect information about the apps, browsers, and devices you use to access Google services
The information we collect includes unique identifiers, browser type and settings, device type and settings, operating system, mobile network information including carrier name and phone number, and application version number.
We also collect information about the interaction of your apps, browsers, and devices with our services, including IP address, crash reports, system activity, and the date, time, and referrer URL of your request.
We collect this information when a Google service on your device contacts our servers
your device periodically contacts Google servers to provide information about your device and connection to our services
which apps you've installed
depending on your device settings
Qualifications & exceptions
The Android reporting of installed apps and other usage information is described with "depending on your device settings" for the other information; installed apps are listed without that qualifier.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google collects your activity in its services, including searches, views, purchases and synced Chrome history
Google collects information about your activity in its services, which it uses for things like recommending a YouTube video. The activity information may include terms you search for, videos you watch, views and interactions with content and ads, media from your interactions such as images, files, audio and video, purchase activity, people you communicate or share content with, activity on third-party sites and apps that use Google services, and Chrome browsing history you have synced with your Google Account. Depending on your settings, activity from services such as Search, Maps and Shopping is saved to your account history, and you can find and manage activity saved in your history in your Google Account.
Supporting quotations
We collect information about your activity in our services
The activity information we collect may include:
Terms you search for
Videos you watch
Views and interactions with content and ads
Media (like images, files, audio and video) from your interactions
Purchase activity
People with whom you communicate or share content
Activity on third-party sites and apps that use our services
Chrome browsing history you’ve synced with your Google Account
You can visit your Google Account to find and manage activity information that’s saved in your history.
Qualifications & exceptions
The list is introduced with "may include", so each item is a possibility rather than a certainty for every user.
Chrome browsing history is only included when it is synced with your Google Account.
Whether activity is saved to your account history depends on your history and personalization settings.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
If you use Google calling or messaging, Google may collect call and message log details
If you use Google services to make and receive calls or send and receive messages, Google may collect call and message log information. The listed items include phone numbers (including calling-party, receiving-party and forwarding numbers), sender and recipient email addresses, time and date of calls and messages, call duration, routing information, and types and volumes of calls and messages. This is log information about the communications, not a statement here about collecting their contents.
Supporting quotations
If you use our services to make and receive calls or send and receive messages, we may collect call and message log information
phone number, calling-party number, receiving-party number, forwarding numbers, sender and recipient email address, time and date of calls and messages, duration of calls, routing information, and types and volumes of calls and messages
Qualifications & exceptions
"May collect" is permissive.
Which services count is clarified elsewhere in the policy, which names examples such as Google Voice, Meet, Gmail, Chat, Duo and Fi.
Not stated here
This paragraph does not itself say whether the contents of calls or messages are collected; the content-you-create paragraph covers email you write and receive.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google collects location from GPS, IP address, activity and nearby devices, depending on products and settings
Google collects location information when you use its services, which it says helps with features such as driving directions, nearby search results and ads based on location. Depending on the products you use and the settings you choose, it may use different types of location information: GPS and other sensor data from your device, IP address, activity on Google services (such as searches or places you label like home or work), and information about things near your device such as Wi-Fi access points, cell towers and Bluetooth-enabled devices. Google adds that the types of location data collected and how long it is stored depend in part on your device and account settings.
Supporting quotations
We collect location information when you use our services
ads based on your location
Depending on the products you’re using and settings you choose, Google may use different types of location information
GPS and other sensor data from your device
IP address
Activity on Google services, such as from your searches or places you label like home or work
Information about things near your device, such as Wi-Fi access points, cell towers, and Bluetooth-enabled devices
The types of location data we collect and how long we store it depend in part on your device and account settings.
Qualifications & exceptions
The types used depend on the products and settings; not every type applies to every user.
Location use includes advertising, as the purposes sentence lists ads based on your location.
Not stated here
The retention period for location data is not stated in this section.
Data Access & Collection · User right or choice
Location data collected and its storage depend on device and account settings; searches may be saved to history
Google says the types of location data it collects, and how long it stores them, depend in part on your device and account settings. You can turn your Android device's location on or off in the device settings app, and you can turn on Timeline to create a private map of where you go with your signed-in devices. Depending on your settings, your searches and other activity from Google services, which may also include location information, are saved as history to your Google Account: activity from services such as Search, Maps and Shopping goes to Search Services History, and activity on some other Google sites and apps goes to Web & App Activity.
Supporting quotations
The types of location data we collect and how long we store it depend in part on your device and account settings.
turn your Android device’s location on or off
You can also turn on [Timeline](https://support.google.com/accounts?p=privpol_lochistory) if you want to create a private map of where you go with your signed-in devices.
Depending on your settings, your searches and other activity from Google services, which may also include location information, are saved as history to your Google Account.
activity from services like Search, Maps, and Shopping is saved to Search Services History, and your activity on some other Google sites and apps is saved to Web & App Activity
Saving activity from services like Search, Maps, and Shopping to your Search Services History lets you do things like resume an AI Mode interaction where you left off or see past searches as Autocomplete suggestions.
Qualifications & exceptions
Timeline is described as something you turn on; it is not described here as on by default.
History saving is "depending on your settings"; the personalization controls section explains these settings.
Not stated here
The storage periods for location data are not given here; retention is described only generally in the retention section.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google also collects information about you from public sources and trusted partners
In some circumstances Google collects information about you from publicly accessible sources, for example indexing a local newspaper article that mentions your name and showing it to people who search for it. It may also collect information about you from trusted partners: directory services that supply business information, marketing partners that supply information about potential customers of Google's business services, and security partners that supply information to protect against abuse. Google also receives information from partners to provide advertising and research services on their behalf; an example given is merchants uploading loyalty-card data, and Google says it only provides aggregated reports to advertisers that do not reveal information about individual people. Google also says it may collect publicly available online information to help train its AI models and build products such as Google Translate, Gemini Apps and Cloud AI capabilities.
Supporting quotations
In some circumstances, Google also collects information about you from publicly accessible sources.
We may also collect information about you from trusted partners, such as directory services who provide us with business information to be displayed on Google’s services, marketing partners who provide us with information about potential customers of our business services, and security partners who provide us with information to protect against abuse.
We also receive information from partners to provide advertising and research services on their behalf.
We only provide aggregated reports to advertisers that don’t reveal information about individual people.
we may collect information that’s publicly available online or from other public sources to help train Google’s AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps, and Cloud AI capabilities
Qualifications & exceptions
"In some circumstances" and "may" limit these statements; they are not a promise that all of these sources are used for every person.
The aggregated-reports limit applies to reports given to advertisers, not to what Google receives from partners.
Not stated here
The policy does not list the specific public sources or named partners.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google collects and stores information using cookies, pixel tags, local storage, databases and server logs
Google says it uses various technologies to collect and store information, including cookies, pixel tags, local storage such as browser web storage or application data caches, databases and server logs.
Supporting quotations
We use various technologies to collect and store information, including cookies, pixel tags, local storage, such as browser web storage or application data caches, databases, and server logs.
Qualifications & exceptions
"Including" means the list is not exhaustive.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Google uses information to provide, maintain, improve and develop services, including training AI models on public data
Google says it uses the information collected from all its services for several purposes. It uses your information to deliver services, such as processing search terms to return results or suggesting recipients from your contacts when you share. It also uses information to check that services work as intended, such as tracking outages and troubleshooting issues you report, and to improve services, for example learning which search terms are often misspelled to improve spell-check. It uses information from existing services to help develop new ones, with the Picasa to Google Photos example. Elsewhere Google says its research and development use includes using publicly available information to help train its AI models.
Supporting quotations
We use the information we collect from all our services for the following purposes:
We use your information to deliver our services
We also use your information to ensure our services are working as intended
we use your information to make improvements to our services
We use the information we collect in existing services to help us develop new ones.
we use publicly available information to help train Google’s AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps, and Cloud AI capabilities
Qualifications & exceptions
The statement applies to information collected "from all our services", so one service's data can inform another service's improvements.
The AI-training statement elsewhere is about publicly available information; this section does not say whether other data is used for training.
Not stated here
Whether information from your account content is used to train AI models is not stated in this section.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Google uses your information to personalize content, recommendations and search results, depending on your settings
Google uses the information it collects to tailor its services for you, including personalized experiences and recommendations such as content and search results. Its examples are Security Checkup tips adapted to how you use Google products and, depending on your available settings, Google Play using the apps you have installed and videos you have watched on YouTube to suggest new apps. Elsewhere Google says that when Personalized Recommendations in Search services is on, those services can give results, curated feeds and AI responses personalized to you from information in your Google Account, including Search Services History.
Supporting quotations
We use the information we collect to tailor our services for you, including providing customized and personalized experiences and recommendations, including things like content, and search results.
depending on your available settings, Google Play could use information like apps you’ve already installed and videos you’ve watched on YouTube to suggest new apps you might like
When Personalized Recommendations in Search services is on, these services can provide results, curated feeds, and AI responses that are personalized to you based on info in your Google Account, including Search Services History.
Qualifications & exceptions
Some examples apply only "depending on your available settings".
Use & Processing · Company practice
Depending on your settings, Google may show personalized ads based on your interests and activity across its services
Depending on your settings, Google may show you personalized ads based on your interests and your activity across Google services. For example, searching for "mountain bikes" may lead to sports-equipment ads on YouTube. You can control what information Google uses to show you ads through your ad settings in My Ad Center. Google also says you may see personalized ads based on information from an advertiser, such as a visit to the advertiser's website.
Supporting quotations
Depending on your settings, we may also show you personalized ads based on your interests and activity across Google services.
You can control what information we use to show you ads by visiting your ad settings in
You may also see personalized ads based on information from the advertiser.
Qualifications & exceptions
The ads statement is conditioned on settings; the controls are in My Ad Center.
Advertiser-supplied information can also drive personalized ads, per the linked explanation elsewhere in the policy.
Use & Processing · Company commitment
Google says it does not use sensitive categories or Drive, Gmail and Photos content for personalized ads
Google lists limits on ads. It says it does not show personalized ads based on sensitive categories such as race, religion, sexual orientation or health, and elsewhere it says it also does not use topics based on those categories and requires the same from advertisers that use its services. It says it does not show personalized ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail or Photos. And it says it does not share information that personally identifies you, such as your name or email, with advertisers unless you ask it to; its example is that tapping a "tap to call" button on an ad connects your call and may share your phone number with the business.
Supporting quotations
We don’t show you personalized ads based on sensitive categories, such as race, religion, sexual orientation, or health.
We don’t show you personalized ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail, or Photos.
We don’t share information that personally identifies you with advertisers, such as your name or email, unless you ask us to.
we’ll connect your call and may share your phone number with the flower shop
We don’t use topics or show personalized ads based on sensitive categories like race, religion, sexual orientation, or health.
require the same from advertisers
Qualifications & exceptions
The limit on sharing identifying information is stated as "unless you ask us to".
These are statements about personalized ads; they do not say the underlying data is not collected or used for other purposes such as the ones in this section.
Elsewhere Google says its automated systems analyze your content to provide personalized ads, which should be read together with the Drive, Gmail and Photos limit.
Not stated here
The policy does not say which Google products' content, beyond Drive, Gmail and Photos, is excluded from personalized ads.
Google uses data for analytics and ad measurement; its ad and analytics services may link your activity across sites
Google uses data for analytics and measurement to understand how its services are used, for example analyzing visits to its sites to optimize product design. It also uses data about the ads you interact with, including related Google Search activity, to help advertisers understand how their ad campaigns perform. It uses ad and analytics tools for this. When you visit sites or use apps that use Google's ad or analytics services, those services may link information about your activity there with your activity from other sites or apps that use Google services. Elsewhere Google gives an example that data from Google Analytics can be linked by the Analytics customer and by Google to cookies and other technologies related to visits to other sites and apps.
Supporting quotations
We use data for analytics and measurement to understand how our services are used.
we also use data about the ads you interact with, including your related Google Search activity, to help advertisers understand the performance of their ad campaigns
those services may link information about your activity from that site or app with activity from other sites or apps that use our services
data generated through Google Analytics can be linked by the Google Analytics customer and by Google to cookies and other technologies that are related to visits to other websites and apps
Qualifications & exceptions
"May link" describes what the services are able to do; the policy does not say here that every visit is linked.
Linking of activity to your Google Account personal information depends on account settings, as the cross-service paragraph says.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Google uses your contact details to notify you of suspicious activity and changes, and keeps records of requests
Google uses information such as your email address to interact with you directly. Examples are notifying you of suspicious activity such as an attempt to sign in from an unusual location, and letting you know about upcoming changes or improvements to services. If you contact Google, it keeps a record of your request to help solve any issues.
Supporting quotations
We use information we collect, like your email address, to interact with you directly.
we may send you a notification if we detect suspicious activity
if you contact Google, we’ll keep a record of your request in order to help solve any issues you might be facing
Security & Safeguards · Company practice
Google uses information to respond to fraud, abuse and security risks, and may disable accounts or report to authorities
Google uses information to improve the safety and reliability of its services, including detecting, preventing and responding to fraud, abuse, security risks and technical issues that could harm Google, its users or the public. Elsewhere Google says that when it detects spam, malware, illegal content (including child sexual abuse and exploitation material) or other abuse in violation of its policies, it may disable your account or take other appropriate action, and in certain circumstances may also report the violation to appropriate authorities.
Supporting quotations
We use information to help improve the safety and reliability of our services.
detecting, preventing, and responding to fraud, abuse, security risks, and technical issues that could harm Google, our users, or the public
we may disable your account or take other appropriate action
we may also report the violation to appropriate authorities
Qualifications & exceptions
Account disabling and reporting are described as things Google "may" do and only in the context of detected violations.
Not stated here
The policy does not describe the process for appealing an account action here.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Google uses automated systems that analyze your content for tailored results, personalized ads and abuse detection
Google says it uses automated systems that analyze your content to provide things like tailored search results, personalized ads or other features tailored to how you use its services. It also analyzes your content to help detect abuse such as spam, malware and illegal content, and uses algorithms to recognize patterns in data, for example Google Translate detecting common language patterns.
Supporting quotations
We use automated systems that analyze your content to provide you with things like tailored search results, personalized ads, or other features tailored to how you use our services.
we analyze your content to help us detect abuse such as spam, malware, and illegal content
We also use algorithms to recognize patterns in data.
Qualifications & exceptions
Google separately says it does not show personalized ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail or Photos; the policy does not reconcile this with "analyze your content ... personalized ads" in a single statement, so the exact scope of content analyzed for ads is not spelled out.
Not stated here
Which products' content is analyzed for which purposes is not specified in this paragraph.
Linking & Identification · Company practice
Google may use information across its services and devices, and may tie other-site activity to your personal information
Google says it may use the information it collects across its services and across your devices for the purposes described above. Depending on your available settings, its example is that watching guitar-player videos on YouTube may lead to a guitar-lesson ad on a site that uses Google ad products. Depending on your account settings, your activity on other sites and apps may be associated with your personal information in order to improve Google's services and the ads delivered by Google.
Supporting quotations
We may use the information we collect across our services and across your devices for the purposes described above.
depending on your available settings, if you watch videos of guitar players on YouTube, you might see an ad for guitar lessons on a site that uses our ad products
Depending on your account settings, your activity on other sites and apps may be associated with your personal information in order to improve Google’s services and the ads delivered by Google.
Qualifications & exceptions
Cross-service use and association with personal information are limited by "depending on your available settings" and "depending on your account settings".
Not stated here
The policy does not list which settings turn this association on or off in this paragraph; the controls section describes Web & App Activity and its sub-setting.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Others who already have your email may be shown your public Google Account name and photo
If other users already have your email address or other information that identifies you, Google may show them your publicly visible Google Account information, such as your name and photo. Google says this helps people identify an email coming from you.
Supporting quotations
If other users already have your email address or other information that identifies you, we may show them your publicly visible Google Account information, such as your name and photo.
Qualifications & exceptions
Limited to publicly visible Google Account information; "may" is permissive.
Use & Processing · Company commitment
Google says it will ask for your consent before using your information for a purpose not covered by the policy
Google says it will ask for your consent before using your information for a purpose that is not covered in this Privacy Policy.
Supporting quotations
We’ll ask for your consent before using your information for a purpose that isn’t covered in this Privacy Policy.
Qualifications & exceptions
The commitment is limited to purposes not covered; the purposes the policy does cover are broad, so this protection applies only outside them.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
Google points to the Privacy Checkup and per-product settings as the main privacy controls
This section describes key controls for managing your privacy across Google services. Google also points to the Privacy Checkup, where you can review and adjust important privacy settings, and says it offers specific privacy settings inside individual products that are explained in its Product Privacy Guide.
Supporting quotations
This section describes key controls for managing your privacy across our services.
which provides an opportunity to review and adjust important privacy settings
we also offer specific privacy settings in our products
Not stated here
The Product Privacy Guide and the settings inside individual products are linked but not supplied, so those product-specific settings are not described here.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
When signed in, you can review and update your information in each service and in your Google Account
When you are signed in, you can always review and update information by visiting the services you use; for example Photos and Drive help you manage the content you have saved there. Google also says it built a place in your Google Account to review and control information saved there, which includes the privacy controls described next.
Supporting quotations
When you’re signed in, you can always review and update information by visiting the services you use.
We also built a place for you to review and control information saved in your Google Account.
Qualifications & exceptions
The right to review and update applies when you are signed in.
Use & Processing · User right or choice
History and personalization controls let you choose whether activity is saved to your account and used to personalize
Across many services you can adjust history and personalization controls to choose whether some types of data are saved in your Google Account and how it is used to personalize your experience. Examples: with YouTube History on, the videos you watch and search for are saved for better recommendations; saving activity from Search, Maps and Shopping to your Search Services History lets you resume an AI Mode interaction or see past searches as Autocomplete suggestions; when Personalized Recommendations in Search services is on, those services can give results, curated feeds and AI responses personalized from your Google Account info, including Search Services History; and with Web & App Activity on, activity from some other Google services is saved for more personalized experiences. Web & App Activity also has a subsetting that controls whether some information about your activity on other sites, apps and devices that use Google services is saved with it and used to improve Google services.
Supporting quotations
you can adjust history and personalization controls to make choices about whether we save some types of data in your Google Account and how we use it to personalize your experience
if you have YouTube History turned on, the videos you watch and the things you search for are saved in your account
Saving activity from services like Search, Maps, and Shopping to your Search Services History
When Personalized Recommendations in Search services is on, these services can provide results, curated feeds, and AI responses that are personalized to you based on info in your Google Account, including Search Services History.
if you have Web & App Activity turned on, your activity from some other Google services are saved in your account so you can get more personalized experiences
Web & App Activity also has a subsetting that lets you control whether some
Qualifications & exceptions
Each example depends on a specific control being on.
The controls decide what is saved to your account and used to personalize; they are not described here as stopping all collection.
Not stated here
The default state of each control is not stated in this paragraph.
Use & Processing · User right or choice
Ad settings let you change interests, limit use of personal information for ad relevance, and turn off some ad services
Ad settings let you manage your preferences about ads shown on Google and on sites and apps that partner with Google to show ads. You can modify your interests, choose whether your personal information is used to make ads more relevant to you, and turn on or off certain advertising services. This is described as a choice about relevance and certain ad services; the policy does not say here that you can stop all ads.
Supporting quotations
Manage your preferences about the ads shown to you on Google and on sites and apps that partner with Google to show ads.
You can modify your interests, choose whether your personal information is used to make ads more relevant to you, and turn on or off certain advertising services.
Sharing & Disclosure · User right or choice
You can control who sees your account details and whether your name and photo appear in ads as shared endorsements
The About You page lets you manage personal information in your Google Account and control who can see it across Google services. The Shared endorsements setting lets you choose whether your name and photo appear next to your activity, such as reviews and recommendations, in ads. Elsewhere Google says that when you are signed in and comment on a YouTube video or review an app in Play, your name and photo appear next to that activity, and that this information may also be displayed in ads depending on the Shared endorsements setting.
Supporting quotations
Manage personal info in your Google Account and control who can see it across Google services.
Choose whether your name and photo appear next to your activity, like reviews and recommendations, that appear in ads.
your name and photo appear next to your activity
We may also display this information in
ads depending on your Shared endorsements setting
Qualifications & exceptions
Display in ads depends on the Shared endorsements setting; the policy does not state the default here.
Linking & Identification · User right or choice
A setting lets you manage information that sites and apps using Google services share with Google
Google points to a way to manage information that websites and apps using Google services, such as Google Analytics, may share with Google when you visit or interact with them. The controls themselves are on linked pages that are not supplied here.
Supporting quotations
Manage information that websites and apps using Google services, like Google Analytics, may share with Google when you visit or interact with their services.
Not stated here
The specific options and their effect are on a linked page that is not supplied.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
My Activity, Google Dashboard and personal info pages let you review, control and delete saved data
My Activity lets you review and control data saved to your Google Account when you are signed in and using Google services, such as searches or visits to Google Play. You can browse by date and topic and delete part or all of your activity. Google Dashboard lets you manage information associated with specific products. A personal info page lets you manage contact information such as your name, email and phone number.
Supporting quotations
My Activity allows you to review and control data that’s saved to your Google Account when you’re signed in and using Google services
You can browse by date and by topic, and delete part or all of your activity.
Google Dashboard allows you to manage information associated with specific products.
Manage your contact information, such as your name, email, and phone number.
Qualifications & exceptions
My Activity covers data saved to your account while signed in.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
Signed out, you can manage search customization, YouTube history and ad settings tied to your browser or device
When you are signed out, you can manage information associated with your browser or device. The listed options are signed-out search customization, where you choose whether your search activity is used to offer more relevant results and recommendations; YouTube settings, where you can pause and delete your YouTube Search History and Watch History; and ad settings for ads on Google and on partner sites and apps. Google also says you may get customized search results while signed out, and that if you do not want that you can search and browse privately or turn off signed-out search customization.
Supporting quotations
When you’re signed out, you can manage information associated with your browser or device, including:
Choose whether your search activity is used to offer you more relevant results and recommendations.
YouTube settings: Pause and delete your
preferences about the ads shown to you on Google and on sites and apps that partner with Google to show ads
If you don’t want this level of search customization, you can
Qualifications & exceptions
These controls are tied to the browser or device, not to an account.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
You can export a copy of the content in your Google Account
Google says you can export a copy of content in your Google Account if you want to back it up or use it with a service outside of Google, using the export tool it links.
Supporting quotations
You can export a copy of content in your Google Account if you want to back it up or use it with a service outside of Google.
Qualifications & exceptions
The statement covers "content in your Google Account", not necessarily every kind of data Google holds about you.
Not stated here
Which products' data the export tool includes is not described here.
Retention & Deletion · User right or choice
You can delete content, products or your whole account, but deleted copies may linger and some data is kept
To delete your information, Google lists these options: delete your content from specific Google services; search for and delete specific items using My Activity; delete specific Google products, including your information associated with those products; or delete your entire Google Account. Google also says that when you delete data it follows a deletion process to remove it from its servers or keep it only in anonymized form, that there may be delays between deletion and when copies are deleted from active and backup systems, and that some data is kept longer when necessary for legitimate business or legal purposes such as security, fraud and abuse prevention or financial record-keeping.
Supporting quotations
To delete your information, you can:
Delete your content from specific Google services
Search for and then delete specific items from your account using
including your information associated with those products
Delete your entire Google Account
we follow a deletion process to make sure that your data is safely and completely removed from our servers or retained only in anonymized form
there may be delays between when you delete something and when copies are deleted from our active and backup systems
And some data we retain for longer periods of time when necessary for legitimate business or legal purposes, such as security, fraud and abuse prevention, or financial record-keeping.
Qualifications & exceptions
Deletion is not described as instant: delays for active and backup copies are acknowledged.
Longer retention for security, fraud and abuse prevention, and financial record-keeping is an exception to deletion.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
Inactive Account Manager lets you give someone access to parts of your account if you cannot use it
Google says Inactive Account Manager allows you to give someone else access to parts of your Google Account in case you are unexpectedly unable to use your account.
Supporting quotations
allows you to give someone else access to parts of your Google Account in case you’re unexpectedly unable to use your account
Qualifications & exceptions
Access is to "parts of" the account, as you choose.
Not stated here
How the feature is triggered or what the trusted person can access is on a linked page that is not supplied.
Content & IP Rights · User right or choice
You can request removal of content from specific Google services based on applicable law and Google policies
You can also request that content be removed from specific Google services, but Google ties this to applicable law and its policies, so a request is not a guarantee of removal.
Supporting quotations
request to remove content
from specific Google services based on applicable law and our policies
Qualifications & exceptions
Removal depends on applicable law and Google's policies.
Data Access & Collection · User right or choice
Browser and device settings can limit what Google collects, but Google services rely on cookies to work properly
Whether or not you are signed in, you can use browser settings to be told when Google sets a cookie and to block cookies from a specific domain or all domains, and device-level settings such as Android location settings, which may determine what information Google collects. Google warns that its services rely on cookies to function properly, for example to remember language preferences, and elsewhere gives the example that blocking a cookie that lets you open many Google Docs in one browser would stop Docs from working as expected.
Supporting quotations
There are other ways to control the information Google collects whether or not you’re signed in to a Google Account
you can configure your browser to indicate when Google has set a cookie in your browser
configure your browser to block all cookies from a specific domain or all domains
But remember that our services rely on cookies to function properly
Your device may have controls that determine what information we collect.
Blocking this cookie would prevent Google Docs from working as expected.
Qualifications & exceptions
Blocking cookies can break service features.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Content you share publicly may become accessible through search engines, including Google Search
Many Google services let you share information with other people, and Google says you control how you share, for example by making YouTube videos public or keeping them private. Google warns that when you share information publicly, your content may become accessible through search engines, including Google Search.
Supporting quotations
Many of our services let you share information with other people, and you have control over how you share.
when you share information publicly, your content may become accessible through search engines, including Google Search
Qualifications & exceptions
The warning applies to information you share publicly; private sharing choices are yours.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Your name and photo appear next to activity like YouTube comments and Play reviews, and may appear in ads
When you are signed in and interact with some Google services, such as leaving a comment on a YouTube video or reviewing an app in Play, your name and photo appear next to your activity. Google may also display this information in ads, depending on your Shared endorsements setting.
Supporting quotations
When you’re signed in and interact with some Google services, like leaving comments on a YouTube video or reviewing an app in Play, your name and photo appear next to your activity.
ads depending on your Shared endorsements setting
Qualifications & exceptions
Display in ads depends on the Shared endorsements setting.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company commitment
Google says it does not share your personal information outside Google except in listed cases, and does not sell it
Google says it does not share your personal information with companies, organizations or individuals outside Google except in the cases that follow: with your consent, with domain administrators, for external processing, and for legal reasons. In its U.S. state law section it adds that Google does not sell your personal information and does not "share" it as that term is defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act. The policy defines personal information as information you provide that personally identifies you (such as name, email or billing information) or other data that Google can reasonably link to such information, including information it associates with your Google Account. Non-personally identifiable information is information recorded about users so that it no longer reflects or references an individually identifiable user.
Supporting quotations
We do not share your personal information with companies, organizations, or individuals outside of Google except in the following cases:
Google does not sell your personal information. Google also does not “share” your personal information as that term is defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
This is information that you provide to us which personally identifies you, such as your name, email address, or billing information, or other data that can be reasonably linked to such information by Google, such as information we associate with your Google Account.
This is information that is recorded about users so that it no longer reflects or references an individually-identifiable user.
Qualifications & exceptions
The commitment is limited to personal information as defined; it does not cover non-personally identifiable information, which the policy says may be shared publicly and with partners.
The CCPA statement uses that law's defined meaning of "share".
Cross-references
contrast (model-proposed): Google may share non-personal information publicly and let partners collect data for advertising and measurement — contrast: The commitment not to share personal information outside Google sits beside a statement that specific partners are allowed to collect information from your browser or device for advertising and measurement with their own cookies. The policy does not say whether that partner collection counts as sharing or personal information.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company commitment
Google shares personal information outside Google with your consent, and asks explicit consent for sensitive information
Google says it shares personal information outside Google when it has your consent. Its example is that if you use Google Home to make a reservation through a booking service, it asks your permission before sharing your name or phone number with the restaurant. It provides controls to review and manage third-party apps and sites you have given access to data in your Google Account. It says it will ask for your explicit consent to share any sensitive personal information, which the policy describes as a category relating to topics such as confidential medical facts, racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, or sexuality.
Supporting quotations
We’ll share personal information outside of Google when we have your consent.
we’ll get your permission before sharing your name or phone number with the restaurant
We also provide you with controls to
We’ll ask for your explicit consent to share any sensitive personal information.
This is a particular category of personal information relating to topics such as confidential medical facts, racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, or sexuality.
Qualifications & exceptions
Explicit consent is stated for sharing sensitive personal information.
The other listed sharing cases (domain administrators, external processing, legal reasons) do not depend on this consent.
If you use a school or work account, domain administrators and resellers can access and restrict your Google Account
If you are a student or work for an organization that uses Google services, your domain administrator and the resellers who manage your account will have access to your Google Account. They may be able to access and retain information stored in your account such as your email; view statistics such as how many apps you install; change your account password; suspend or terminate your account access; receive your account information to satisfy applicable law, regulation, legal process or an enforceable governmental request; and restrict your ability to delete or edit your information or your privacy settings.
Supporting quotations
If you’re a student or work for an organization that uses Google services, your
and resellers who manage your account will have access to your Google Account. They may be able to:
Access and retain information stored in your account, like your email
View statistics regarding your account, like how many apps you install
Change your account password
Suspend or terminate your account access
Receive your account information in order to satisfy applicable law, regulation, legal process, or enforceable governmental request
Restrict your ability to delete or edit your information or your privacy settings
Qualifications & exceptions
Applies if you are a student or work for an organization that uses Google services and manages your account.
"May be able to" means the specific powers depend on what the administrator enables.
Google gives personal information to affiliates and providers to process, including YouTube content and audio samples
Google provides personal information to its affiliates and other trusted businesses or persons to process it for Google, based on its instructions and in compliance with the Privacy Policy and other appropriate confidentiality and security measures. Examples: service providers help operate data centers, deliver products and services, improve internal business processes, and offer support. Google also uses service providers to help review YouTube video content for public safety and to analyze and listen to samples of saved user audio to help improve Google's audio recognition technologies.
Supporting quotations
We provide personal information to our affiliates and other trusted businesses or persons to process it for us, based on our instructions and in compliance with our Privacy Policy and any other appropriate confidentiality and security measures.
we use service providers to help operate our data centers, deliver our products and services, improve our internal business processes, and offer additional support to customers and users
We also use service providers to help review YouTube video content for public safety and analyze and listen to samples of saved user audio to help improve Google’s audio recognition technologies.
Qualifications & exceptions
Providers act on Google's instructions and under confidentiality and security measures, per the policy.
Not stated here
The policy does not name the providers or say how many audio samples are reviewed.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Permission or license
Google shares personal information when it believes disclosure is reasonably necessary for legal or protective reasons
Google says it will share personal information outside Google if it has a good-faith belief that disclosure is reasonably necessary to respond to applicable law, regulation, legal process or an enforceable governmental request; enforce applicable Terms of Service, including investigating potential violations; detect, prevent or address fraud, security or technical issues; or protect against harm to the rights, property or safety of Google, its users or the public. Google publishes a Transparency Report on the number and type of government requests, and elsewhere says its legal team reviews every request and frequently pushes back on requests that appear overly broad or improper.
Supporting quotations
We will share personal information outside of Google if we have a good-faith belief that disclosure of the information is reasonably necessary to:
Respond to any applicable law, regulation,legal process, or enforceable governmental request.
Enforce applicable Terms of Service, including investigation of potential violations.
Detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security, or technical issues.
Protect against harm to the rights, property or safety of Google, our users, or the public.
Our legal team reviews each and every request, regardless of type, and we frequently push back when a request appears to be overly broad or doesn’t follow the correct process.
Qualifications & exceptions
The standard is a "good-faith belief" that disclosure is "reasonably necessary".
The statement that Google reviews every request and pushes back is a general description of practice, not a promise about any particular request.
Google may share non-personal information publicly and let partners collect data for advertising and measurement
Google may share non-personally identifiable information publicly and with partners such as publishers, advertisers, developers or rights holders, for example publicly showing trends about general use of its services. It also allows specific partners to collect information from your browser or device for advertising and measurement purposes using their own cookies or similar technologies. Elsewhere Google gives examples: YouTube creators and advertisers working with measurement companies to learn about audiences, and merchants on shopping pages using cookies to count how many different people see their listings.
Supporting quotations
We may share non-personally identifiable information publicly and with our partners — like publishers, advertisers, developers, or rights holders.
We also allow specific partners to collect information from your browser or device for advertising and measurement purposes using their own cookies or similar technologies.
we allow YouTube creators and advertisers to work with measurement companies to learn about the audience of their YouTube videos or ads, using cookies or similar technologies
Qualifications & exceptions
The partner collection from your browser or device is a permission for specific partners, separate from Google giving them personal information.
Whether the partners' collected data is personal information is not stated here.
Not stated here
The specific partners and their own data practices are not described here.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company commitment
In a merger or sale, Google says it will keep your personal information confidential and give notice before transfer
If Google is involved in a merger, acquisition or sale of assets, it says it will continue to ensure the confidentiality of your personal information and give affected users notice before personal information is transferred or becomes subject to a different privacy policy.
Supporting quotations
If Google is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, we’ll continue to ensure the confidentiality of your personal information and give affected users notice before personal information is transferred or becomes subject to a different privacy policy.
Security & Safeguards · Company practice
Google describes built-in security, encryption in transit, account security features and reviews of its practices
Google says all its products are built with strong security features that continuously protect your information, and that insights from running its services help it detect and automatically block security threats. If it detects something risky that it thinks you should know about, it says it will notify you and guide you through steps to stay protected. It lists measures to protect against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction of information: encryption to keep data private in transit; security features such as Safe Browsing, Security Checkup and 2 Step Verification that you can use to protect your account; and reviews of its information collection, storage and processing practices, including physical security measures, to prevent unauthorized access to its systems.
Supporting quotations
All Google products are built with strong security features that continuously protect your information.
if we do detect something risky that we think you should know about, we’ll notify you and help guide you through steps to stay better protected
We work hard to protect you and Google from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction of information we hold, including:
We use encryption to keep your data private while in transit
We offer a range of security features, like
We review our information collection, storage, and processing practices, including physical security measures, to prevent unauthorized access to our systems
Qualifications & exceptions
These are descriptions of Google's practices and features, not a guarantee that no unauthorized access or loss will occur.
Encryption is stated for data in transit; the policy does not say here that data at rest is encrypted.
Not stated here
The policy does not state encryption practices for stored data.
Security & Safeguards · Company commitment
Google limits access to personal information to staff and agents who need it, under confidentiality duties
Google says it restricts access to personal information to Google employees, contractors and agents who need that information in order to process it. It says anyone with this access is subject to strict contractual confidentiality obligations and may be disciplined or terminated if they fail to meet them.
Supporting quotations
We restrict access to personal information to Google employees, contractors, and agents who need that information in order to process it.
Anyone with this access is subject to strict contractual confidentiality obligations and may be disciplined or terminated if they fail to meet these obligations.
Qualifications & exceptions
Access is described as need-based; the policy does not describe how access is audited.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
You can export a copy of your information or delete it from your Google Account at any time
Google repeats in a second location that you can export a copy of your information or delete it from your Google Account at any time. You can export a copy of content in your Google Account to back it up or use it with a service outside Google, and you can delete content from specific services, delete specific items through My Activity, delete specific Google products with associated information, or delete the entire account. The glossary also says you can edit or delete your account at any time through your Google Account settings.
Supporting quotations
You can export a copy of your information or delete it from your Google Account at any time
You can export a copy of content in your Google Account if you want to back it up or use it with a service outside of Google.
To delete your information, you can:
Delete your content from specific Google services
Search for and then delete specific items from your account using
including your information associated with those products
Delete your entire Google Account
You can edit or delete your account at any time through your Google Account settings.
Qualifications & exceptions
"At any time" is about the ability to start export or deletion; deleted copies may take time to leave active and backup systems and some data is kept for business or legal purposes, as the retention section explains.
Retention & Deletion · Company practice
Google keeps data for different periods depending on what it is, how it is used and your settings
Google says it retains data for different periods depending on what the data is, how it is used and how you configure your settings. Some data you can delete whenever you like, such as personal info and content you create or upload, and you can delete saved activity or choose to have it deleted automatically after a set period; Google keeps this data in your account until you remove it or choose to have it removed. Other data is deleted or anonymized automatically after a set period, such as advertising data in server logs. Some data is kept until you delete your Google Account, such as information about how often you use services. And some data is kept longer when necessary for legitimate business or legal purposes such as security, fraud and abuse prevention, or financial record-keeping.
Supporting quotations
We retain the data we collect for different periods of time depending on what it is, how we use it, and how you configure your settings:
Some data you can delete whenever you like
We’ll keep this data in your Google Account until you remove it or choose to have it removed.
Other data is deleted or anonymized automatically after a set period of time, such as advertising data in server logs.
We keep some data until you delete your Google Account, such as information about how often you use our services.
And some data we retain for longer periods of time when necessary for legitimate business or legal purposes, such as security, fraud and abuse prevention, or financial record-keeping.
You can read more about Google’s data retention periods, including how long it takes us to delete your information.
Qualifications & exceptions
The periods are not stated in the policy text; they vary by data type, use and settings.
Auto-delete for saved activity is something you choose to turn on.
Not stated here
The specific retention periods, including how long it takes to delete your information, are on a linked page that is not supplied.
Retention & Deletion · Company practice
After you delete data Google follows a deletion process, and copies may remain in active and backup systems for a while
When you delete data, Google says it follows a deletion process to make sure the data is safely and completely removed from its servers or retained only in anonymized form. It says it tries to protect information from accidental or malicious deletion, and because of this there may be delays between when you delete something and when copies are deleted from its active and backup systems.
Supporting quotations
When you delete data, we follow a deletion process to make sure that your data is safely and completely removed from our servers or retained only in anonymized form.
We try to ensure that our services protect information from accidental or malicious deletion.
there may be delays between when you delete something and when copies are deleted from our active and backup systems
Qualifications & exceptions
The policy gives no timeframe for the delay in this paragraph.
Not stated here
How long deletion from active and backup systems takes is not stated here.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company commitment
Google says it regularly reviews the policy and checks that its processing complies with it
Google says it regularly reviews this Privacy Policy and makes sure that it processes your information in ways that comply with it.
Supporting quotations
We regularly review this Privacy Policy and make sure that we process your information in ways that comply with it.
Qualifications & exceptions
A statement of internal practice; the policy does not describe who audits it.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company practice
Your information may be processed on servers outside your country, with the same protections and complaint handling
Google maintains servers around the world, and your information may be processed on servers outside the country where you live. It acknowledges that data protection laws vary among countries, with some providing more protection than others, and says that regardless of where your information is processed it applies the same protections described in the policy. It also says it complies with certain legal frameworks relating to the transfer of data. When it receives formal written complaints, it responds by contacting the person who complained, and it works with the appropriate regulators, including local data protection authorities, to resolve complaints about the transfer of data that it cannot resolve with you directly.
Supporting quotations
We maintain servers around the world and your information may be processed on servers located outside of the country where you live.
Regardless of where your information is processed, we apply the same protections described in this policy.
We also comply with certain legal frameworks relating to the transfer of data.
When we receive formal written complaints, we respond by contacting the person who made the complaint.
We work with the appropriate regulatory authorities, including local data protection authorities, to resolve any complaints regarding the transfer of your data that we cannot resolve with you directly.
Qualifications & exceptions
The policy refers to "certain legal frameworks" without naming them.
Not stated here
The specific transfer frameworks Google complies with are not named in this section.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company commitment
For U.S. state laws, Google states it does not sell personal information or "share" it as defined by the CCPA
Google says some U.S. state privacy laws require specific disclosures, and points to where the policy covers the categories and sources of information collected, the purposes of collection and use, when information may be disclosed, and how it is retained. It states that Google does not sell your personal information and does not "share" it as that term is defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act. It also says that when it anonymizes data to protect privacy, it maintains policies and technical measures to avoid re-identifying that information.
Supporting quotations
Some U.S. state privacy laws require specific disclosures.
We explain the categories of information Google collects and the sources of that information
We explain the purposes for which Google collects and uses information
Google does not sell your personal information. Google also does not “share” your personal information as that term is defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
when Google anonymizes data to protect your privacy, we maintain policies and technical measures to avoid re-identifying that information
Qualifications & exceptions
The sale and "share" statements are made in terms of the legal definitions; they are statements about Google's own practice and do not by themselves describe partner collection for advertising described elsewhere.
The anonymization commitment concerns avoiding re-identification of data Google has anonymized.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · User right or choice
U.S. state laws give rights to know, access, correct, delete and opt out of profiling and targeted advertising
Google says U.S. state privacy laws provide the right to request information about how Google collects, uses and discloses your information; to access your information, sometimes in a portable format; to correct it; and to request that Google delete it. Many of these laws also provide the right to opt out of certain forms of profiling and targeted advertising, and the right not to be discriminated against for exercising these rights. For information such as health data that the CCPA treats as sensitive, Google says it only uses it for purposes permitted by the CCPA, such as providing services users request and expect.
Supporting quotations
U.S. state privacy laws also provide the right to request information about how Google collects, uses, and discloses your information.
give you the right to access your information, sometimes in a portable format; correct your information; and to request that Google delete that information
Many of these laws also provide the right to opt out of certain forms of profiling and targeted advertising.
They also provide the right to not be discriminated against for exercising these privacy rights.
Google only uses it for purposes permitted by the CCPA, like to provide services that are requested and expected by our users
Qualifications & exceptions
These are described as rights provided by state laws, which vary by state; this policy does not say which apply to a given person.
The sensitive-information statement is specific to the CCPA's treatment of sensitive information.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · User right or choice
Washington and Nevada health data laws add rights; Google processes covered health data with consent you may withdraw
The Washington My Health My Data Act and Nevada Senate Bill 370 provide specific rights, in addition to the rights above, that apply to health information. When you provide health information subject to these laws, Google says it processes it with your consent, which you may withdraw, or as otherwise permitted by those laws.
Supporting quotations
The Washington My Health My Data Act and Nevada Senate Bill 370 provide specific rights in addition to those rights above, that apply to health information.
When you provide health information subject to these laws, Google processes it with your consent, which you may withdraw, or as otherwise permitted by these laws.
Qualifications & exceptions
The alternative "as otherwise permitted by these laws" means consent is not the only basis described.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Procedure
You exercise state-law rights through account tools or contact Google, and can ask it to reconsider a decision
Google says its privacy controls let you access, review, update and delete your information and export and download a copy of it, and let you control what information it uses to show ads or turn off personalized ads. When you use these tools, it validates your request by verifying that you are signed in to your Google Account. For questions or requests about rights under U.S. state privacy laws, you or your authorized agent can also contact Google, and if you disagree with the decision on your request you can ask Google to reconsider by responding to its email. Google also links more information about how it handles CCPA requests.
Supporting quotations
These tools allow you to access, review, update and delete your information, as well as
You can also control what information we use to show you ads, or turn off personalized ads
we’ll validate your request by verifying that you’re signed in to your Google Account
you (or your authorized agent) can also
if you disagree with the decision on your request, you can ask Google to reconsider it by responding to our email
We also provide more information on Google’s handling of CCPA requests.
Qualifications & exceptions
Validation for tool use is by being signed in; the policy does not describe other verification for contact requests.
Not stated here
The more detailed description of Google's handling of CCPA requests is linked but not supplied.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
A table organizes the policy's information into categories used by some U.S. state privacy laws
Some U.S. state privacy laws require a description of data practices using specific categories. Google says the table that follows uses these categories to organize information already in the policy; it is a re-organization of the policy's statements, not a separate set of terms.
Supporting quotations
Some U.S. state privacy laws also require a description of data practices using specific categories. This table uses these categories to organize the information in this Privacy Policy.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Identifiers category: name, password, phone, address, device identifiers and optional government ID for some features
Under identifiers and similar information, Google lists your name and password, phone number and address, and unique identifiers tied to the browser, application or device you use. Some Google services, such as YouTube Studio, provide the option to submit a valid ID, such as a passport or driver's license, to verify your identity to use additional features.
Supporting quotations
Identifiers and similar information such as your
and password, phone number, and address, as well as unique identifiers tied to the browser, application, or device you’re using
Some Google services like
provide the option to submit a valid ID (such as a passport or driver’s license) to verify your identity to use additional features
Qualifications & exceptions
The ID submission is described as an option for certain services, not a general requirement.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Demographic category: age, gender and language, plus optional details like race and ethnicity for creator features
Under demographic information, Google lists your age, gender and language. If you choose to use optional features such as YouTube Creator Demographics, you can also provide additional information such as your gender identity or race and ethnicity.
Supporting quotations
Demographic information, such as your
If you choose to use optional features like
you can also provide additional information, like your gender identity or race and ethnicity
Qualifications & exceptions
Race and ethnicity are described as optional additional information you can provide for optional features.
Charges & Financial Obligations · Company practice
Commercial category: payment information and purchase history on Google's services
Under commercial information, Google lists your payment information and a history of purchases you make on Google's services.
Supporting quotations
Commercial information such as your
you make on Google’s services.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Biometric category: information like study fingerprints, if you choose to provide it
Under biometric information, Google lists information it collects "if you choose to provide it", with fingerprints in Google's product development studies as the example.
Supporting quotations
Biometric information if you choose to provide it, such as fingerprints in Google’s product development studies.
Qualifications & exceptions
Described as provided by choice and illustrated only by product development studies; the policy does not say here whether other biometric data is collected by other features.
Not stated here
Whether other products use biometric data, and how, is not stated in this category entry.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Activity category: searches, interactions, synced Chrome history, device activity and third-party site and app activity
Under internet, network and other activity information, Google lists your search terms; views and interactions with content and ads; Chrome browsing history you have synced with your Google Account; information about how your apps, browsers and devices interact with its services (such as IP address, crash reports and system activity); and activity on third-party sites and apps that use its services. You can review and control activity data stored in your Google Account in My Activity. Elsewhere Google explains that sites and apps that use its ads, analytics or embedded content may share information about your activity with Google and, depending on your account settings and the products in use, this data may be associated with your personal information.
Supporting quotations
Internet, network, and other activity information such as your search terms; views and interactions with content and ads; Chrome browsing history you’ve synced with your Google Account
and activity on third-party sites and apps that use our services
You can review and control activity data stored in your Google Account in
These services may share information about your activity with Google and, depending on your
Qualifications & exceptions
Whether third-party site and app activity is associated with your personal information depends on account settings and the products in use.
My Activity controls cover activity data stored in your Google Account.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Geolocation category: location from GPS, IP address and sensors, which can be precise depending on settings
Under geolocation data, Google lists location that may be determined by GPS, IP address and other data from sensors on or around your device, depending in part on your device and account settings. Depending on these settings, this may include precise location data, for example GPS data for Android features like navigation or finding your phone.
Supporting quotations
Geolocation data, such as may be determined by GPS, IP address, and other data from sensors on or around your device, depending in part on your device and account settings.
Depending on these settings, this may include precise location data, for example GPS data for Android features like navigation or finding your phone.
The types of location data we collect and how long we store it depend in part on your device and account settings.
Qualifications & exceptions
Precise location is conditioned on device and account settings.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Audio and visual category: media from your interactions, including voice recorded after "Hey Google"
Under audio, electronic, visual and similar information, Google lists media such as images, files, audio and video from your interactions. Elsewhere it explains that you can interact with many services using your device's microphone or camera or by uploading files, images, screenshots, audio and video, and that when your device detects an audio activation command such as "Hey Google", Google records your voice and audio plus a few seconds before the activation.
Supporting quotations
Audio, electronic, visual, and similar information, including media (like images, files, audio and video) from your interactions
When your device detects an audio activation command, like “Hey Google,” Google records your voice and audio plus a few seconds before the activation.
Qualifications & exceptions
The recording described applies when the device detects an activation command; the few seconds recorded before the command are part of the stated practice.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Communications category: emails and messages if you use Google services to send and receive them
Under communications data, Google lists items such as emails if you use its services to send and receive messages.
Supporting quotations
Communications data, such as emails, if you use our services to send and receive messages.
Qualifications & exceptions
Conditioned on using Google services to send and receive messages; "such as" means the examples are not exhaustive.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Health information category: medical history, vital signs and fitness data if you choose to provide it
Under health information, Google lists information it collects if you choose to provide it, such as medical history, vital signs and health metrics like blood glucose levels, and other similar information related to your physical or mental health, in the course of using Google services with health-related features such as the Google Health Studies app, Fitbit or Pixel devices. Elsewhere Google explains that if you use fitness products and apps such as Fitbit, Pixel Watch, Nest or Google Fit, it collects data you provide, like height and weight, and information from those apps and devices, such as sleep patterns, heart rate, skin temperature, calories burned and steps taken.
Supporting quotations
Health information if you choose to provide it, such as your medical history, vital signs and health metrics (like blood glucose levels), and other similar information related to your physical or mental health
If you use fitness products and apps we offer, such as Fitbit, Pixel Watch, Nest or Google Fit, we collect data you provide, like your height and weight.
We also collect information from these apps and devices, such as your sleep patterns, heart rate, skin temperature, calories burned, and steps taken.
Qualifications & exceptions
The category is framed as health information "if you choose to provide it"; the fitness-device paragraph also covers information collected from the devices themselves.
Washington and Nevada health-data laws add rights for covered health information, per the state-law section.
Inference & Profiling · Company practice
Other categories: work and education details, content you create, and inferences such as ad interest categories
Google lists professional, employment and education information, such as information you provide or that is maintained through an organization where you study or work and that uses Google services. It lists other information you create or provide, such as photos, videos, emails, docs and spreadsheets, which Google Dashboard helps you manage by product. And it lists inferences drawn from the above, such as your ads interest categories, which relate to the ad settings in My Ad Center.
Supporting quotations
Professional, employment, and education information, such as information
or that is maintained through an organization using Google services at which you study or work
Other information you create or provide, such as the content you create, upload, or receive (like photos and videos or emails, docs and spreadsheets).
Inferences drawn from the above, like your
Qualifications & exceptions
Inferences are described as drawn from the listed categories.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company practice
Business purposes: security, fraud and abuse protection, and legal compliance including disclosure to law enforcement
Among the business purposes, Google lists using and possibly disclosing information to detect, prevent and respond to security incidents and other malicious, deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity, for example IP addresses that malicious actors have compromised. It also lists using information to satisfy applicable laws or regulations and disclosing information in response to legal process or enforceable government requests, including to law enforcement, and says it provides information about the number and type of government requests in its Transparency Report.
Supporting quotations
Google uses and may disclose information to detect, prevent and respond to security incidents, and for protecting against other malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity.
Google also uses information to satisfy applicable laws or regulations, and discloses information in response to legal process or enforceable government requests, including to law enforcement.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Business purposes: measurement for partners, advertising said to keep services free, and service providers
Under auditing and measurement, Google uses information for analytics and measurement and to fulfill obligations to partners such as publishers, advertisers, developers or rights holders, and may disclose non-personally identifiable information publicly and with these partners, including for auditing. Under advertising, Google processes information to provide ads, including online identifiers, browsing and search activity, and information about your location and interactions with ads, and says this keeps Google's services and many websites and services free of charge. You can control what information is used to show ads in My Ad Center. Under use of service providers, Google shares information with service providers to perform services on its behalf, in compliance with the policy and with confidentiality and security measures, for example customer support.
Supporting quotations
Google uses information for analytics and measurement to understand how our services are used, as well as to fulfill obligations to our partners like publishers, advertisers, developers, or rights holders.
We may disclose non-personally identifiable information publicly and with these partners, including for auditing purposes.
Google processes information to provide advertising, including online identifiers, browsing and search activity, and information about your location and interactions with advertisements.
This keeps Google’s services and many of the websites and services you use free of charge.
Google shares information with service providers to perform services on our behalf, in compliance with our Privacy Policy and other appropriate confidentiality and security measures.
Qualifications & exceptions
The disclosure to partners is described for non-personally identifiable information.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Research and development: improving services and building products, with public data used to train AI models
Under research and development, Google says it uses information to improve its services and to develop new products, features and technologies that benefit users and the public. Its example is using publicly available information to help train Google's AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps and Cloud AI capabilities. Under maintaining services, it uses information to make sure services work as intended, such as tracking outages or troubleshooting bugs and issues you report.
Supporting quotations
Google uses information to improve our services and to develop new products, features and technologies that benefit our users and the public.
we use publicly available information to help train Google’s AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps, and Cloud AI capabilities
Google uses information to ensure our services are working as intended, such as tracking outages or troubleshooting bugs and other issues that you report to us.
Qualifications & exceptions
The AI-training example concerns publicly available information; this entry does not say whether information in your account is used for training.
Not stated here
The policy does not say here whether account content is used to train AI models.
Information may go to people you share with, third parties you allow, service providers and domain administrators
The table of parties with whom information may be disclosed lists: other people you choose to share with, such as docs, photos, YouTube videos or comments, or health information through Fitbit's social features and third-party applications; third parties with your consent, such as services that integrate with Google's services, with controls to review and manage third-party apps and sites that have access to data in your Google Account; service providers, trusted businesses or persons that process information on Google's behalf based on its instructions and in compliance with the policy and confidentiality and security measures; and domain administrators if you work or study at an organization that uses Google services.
Supporting quotations
Other people with whom you choose to share your information, like docs or photos, videos or comments on YouTube, or health information through Fitbit’s social features and third party applications.
Third parties with your consent, such as services that integrate with Google’s services.
review and manage third party apps and sites
Service providers, trusted businesses, or persons that process information on Google’s behalf, based on our instructions and in compliance with our Privacy Policy and any other appropriate confidentiality and security measures.
if you work or study at an organization that uses Google services
Qualifications & exceptions
Each recipient group is tied to a condition: your choice to share, your consent, processing on Google's instructions, or an organization account.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company practice
Law enforcement or other third parties may receive information for the legal reasons described in the sharing section
The last entry in the disclosure table lists law enforcement or other third parties, for the legal reasons described in the Sharing your information section. That section ties disclosure to a good-faith belief that it is reasonably necessary to respond to law or legal process, enforce terms, address fraud or security issues, or protect rights, property or safety.
Supporting quotations
Law enforcement or other third parties, for the legal reasons described in
We will share personal information outside of Google if we have a good-faith belief that disclosure of the information is reasonably necessary to:
Qualifications & exceptions
The entry points to the legal-reasons conditions rather than creating a separate one.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Restriction or exception
The policy covers all services of Google LLC and its affiliates, except those with separate privacy policies
This Privacy Policy applies to all of the services offered by Google LLC and its affiliates, including YouTube, Android and services offered on third-party sites, such as advertising services. It does not apply to services that have separate privacy policies that do not incorporate this Privacy Policy. Later the policy lists privacy notices for specific Google services.
Supporting quotations
This Privacy Policy applies to all of the services offered by Google LLC and its affiliates, including YouTube, Android, and services offered on third-party sites, such as advertising services.
This Privacy Policy doesn’t apply to services that have separate privacy policies that do not incorporate this Privacy Policy.
Qualifications & exceptions
The exclusion is for services with their own policy that does not incorporate this one; the list of specific-service notices later in the document shows examples.
Not stated here
The separate notices for specific services are linked but not supplied here, so the policy cannot say which terms govern in case of overlap.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Restriction or exception
The policy does not cover advertisers' practices or other companies' services, including linked sites
The policy states it does not apply to the information practices of other companies and organizations that advertise Google's services, or to services offered by other companies or individuals, including products or sites they offer that may include Google services to which the policy applies, or products or sites displayed to you in search results or linked from Google services.
Supporting quotations
This Privacy Policy doesn’t apply to:
The information practices of other companies and organizations that advertise our services
Services offered by other companies or individuals, including products or sites they offer that may include Google services to which the policy applies, or products or sites displayed to you in search results, or linked from our services
Qualifications & exceptions
A third-party site that includes a Google service is outside this policy as to its own practices, even though Google's own handling of data it receives is covered.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company commitment
Google may change the policy but says it will not reduce your rights without explicit consent
Google says it changes the Privacy Policy from time to time. It says it will not reduce your rights under this Privacy Policy without your explicit consent. It always indicates the date the last changes were published and offers access to archived versions. If changes are significant, it says it will provide a more prominent notice, including, for certain services, email notification of Privacy Policy changes.
Supporting quotations
We change this Privacy Policy from time to time.
We will not reduce your rights under this Privacy Policy without your explicit consent.
We always indicate the date the last changes were published and we offer access to archived versions for your review.
If changes are significant, we’ll provide a more prominent notice (including, for certain services, email notification of Privacy Policy changes).
Qualifications & exceptions
The no-reduction promise is about rights under this Privacy Policy and requires explicit consent.
Email notification is described only for certain services.
Not stated here
What counts as a "significant" change is not defined.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Google lists separate privacy notices for payments, Gemini Apps, Fi, education, children and Family Link services
Google says the following privacy notices provide additional information about some Google services: Payments, Fiber, Gemini Apps, Google Fi, Google Workspace for Education, Read Along, YouTube Kids, Google Accounts managed with Family Link for children under 13 (or the applicable age in the country), the Family Link privacy guide for children and teens, and voice and audio collection from children's features on the Google Assistant. These notices are separate documents with their own terms.
Supporting quotations
The following privacy notices provide additional information about some Google services:
Payments
Fiber
Gemini Apps
Google Fi
Google Workspace for Education
Read Along
YouTube Kids
Google Accounts Managed with Family Link, for Children under 13 (or applicable age in your country)
Family Link privacy guide for children & teens
Voice and Audio Collection from Children’s Features on the Google Assistant
Qualifications & exceptions
The notices are described as additional information about those services; the policy does not say here how they rank against this policy where they differ, except that this policy does not apply to services with separate policies that do not incorporate it.
Several of them concern children, teens or students, who are different audiences from the general consumer users this policy addresses.
Not stated here
The listed notices are linked but not supplied, so their terms are not described in this analysis.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Members of organizations using Google Workspace or Cloud Platform are pointed to the Google Cloud Privacy Notice
If you are a member of an organization that uses Google Workspace or Google Cloud Platform, Google points you to the Google Cloud Privacy Notice for how those services collect and use your personal information. That notice is a separate document that is not supplied here.
Supporting quotations
If you’re a member of an organization that uses Google Workspace or Google Cloud Platform, learn how these services collect and use your personal information in the
Not stated here
The Google Cloud Privacy Notice is linked but not supplied, so what it says about organization accounts is not described.
Account & Service Control · Context
The policy points to account settings, the Privacy Checkup, safety resources and technology explainers
Google lists resources for learning about its practices and settings: your Google Account for managing account settings, the Privacy Checkup for key privacy settings, Google's safety center for built-in security, privacy controls and family tools, a Teen Privacy Guide, a Privacy & Terms page with more context on this policy and the Terms of Service, and a Technologies page about how Google uses cookies, technologies used for advertising, and how it uses information from sites or apps that use its services.
Supporting quotations
The following links highlight useful resources for you to learn more about our practices and privacy settings.
is home to many of the settings you can use to manage your account
guides you through key privacy settings for your Google Account
helps you learn more about our built-in security, privacy controls, and tools to help set digital ground rules for your family online
Privacy & Terms provides more context regarding this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service
Technologies includes more information about:
How Google uses cookies
Technologies used for Advertising
How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services
Not stated here
These resources are linked but not supplied, so their content is not described.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Key term: affiliates are entities in the Google group of companies, including named consumer-service companies in the EU
The policy defines an affiliate as an entity that belongs to the Google group of companies, including the following companies that provide consumer services in the EU: Google Ireland Limited, Google Commerce Ltd, Google Payment Corp and Google Dialer Inc. It links a separate list of companies providing business services in the EU. This definition matters for the statements about providing personal information to affiliates and for the scope "Google LLC and its affiliates".
Supporting quotations
An affiliate is an entity that belongs to the Google group of companies, including the following companies that provide consumer services in the EU: Google Ireland Limited, Google Commerce Ltd, Google Payment Corp, and Google Dialer Inc.
Qualifications & exceptions
The named companies are examples for EU consumer services, introduced by "including".
Data Access & Collection · Context
Key terms: cookies, data caches and browser web storage can recognize your browser and keep data on your device
The glossary defines a cookie as a small file with a string of characters sent to your computer when you visit a website; on a later visit it lets the site recognize your browser, and cookies may store preferences and other information. You can configure your browser to refuse all cookies or indicate when one is sent, but some website features or services may not work properly without cookies. An application data cache is a data repository on a device that can let a web application run offline and load faster. Browser web storage lets websites store data in a browser, and in "local storage" mode the data persists across sessions, even after the browser is closed and reopened.
Supporting quotations
A cookie is a small file containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer when you visit a website. When you visit the site again, the cookie allows that site to recognize your browser.
You can configure your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, some website features or services may not function properly without cookies.
An application data cache is a data repository on a device.
Browser web storage enables websites to store data in a browser on a device.
When used in "local storage" mode, it enables data to be stored across sessions.
Qualifications & exceptions
These are definitions of the technologies named in the collection section, not statements about which cookies Google sets.
Account & Service Control · Context
Key term: a Google Account typically uses your name, email and password to authenticate you; you can edit or delete it
The glossary says you may access some services by signing up for a Google Account and giving some personal information, typically your name, email address and a password. Google says this account information is used to authenticate you when you access Google services and protect your account from unauthorized access by others. It says you can edit or delete your account at any time through your Google Account settings.
Supporting quotations
You may access some of our services by signing up for a
providing us with some personal information (typically your name, email address, and a password)
This account information is used to authenticate you when you access Google services and protect your account from unauthorized access by others.
You can edit or delete your account at any time through your Google Account settings.
Data Access & Collection · Context
Key terms: devices, IP addresses and algorithms; an IP address can often reveal where a device connects from
The glossary defines a device as a computer that can be used to access Google services, such as desktop computers, tablets, smart speakers and smartphones. It explains that an IP address is a number assigned to every device connected to the Internet, usually in geographic blocks, and can often be used to identify the location from which a device is connecting. An algorithm is defined as a process or set of rules followed by a computer in performing problem-solving operations.
Supporting quotations
A device is a computer that can be used to access Google services.
An IP address can often be used to identify the location from which a device is connecting to the Internet.
A process or set of rules followed by a computer in performing problem-solving operations.
Qualifications & exceptions
The IP address definition ties to the location statements elsewhere, which list IP address as a location source.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Key term: non-personally identifiable information no longer reflects or references an identifiable user
The glossary defines non-personally identifiable information as information recorded about users so that it no longer reflects or references an individually identifiable user. This is the category the policy says may be shared publicly and with partners.
Supporting quotations
This is information that is recorded about users so that it no longer reflects or references an individually-identifiable user.
Qualifications & exceptions
The definition depends on the information no longer referencing an individually identifiable user; the policy does not describe the method used to reach that state beyond what the anonymization statement says.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Key term: personal information is what you provide that identifies you, plus data Google can reasonably link to it
The glossary defines personal information as information you provide to Google that personally identifies you, such as your name, email address or billing information, or other data that can be reasonably linked to such information by Google, such as information Google associates with your Google Account. This definition is what the "we do not share your personal information" commitment refers to, so data tied to your account falls within it.
Supporting quotations
This is information that you provide to us which personally identifies you, such as your name, email address, or billing information, or other data that can be reasonably linked to such information by Google, such as information we associate with your Google Account.
Qualifications & exceptions
The definition includes data "reasonably linked" by Google, so account-associated activity data is within it; data stored against device identifiers while signed out is described separately in the collection section.
Key terms: pixel tags track views and email opens, and referrer URLs reveal the last page visited
A pixel tag is defined as technology placed on a website or within the body of an email to track certain activity, such as views of a website or when an email is opened, often used with cookies. A referrer URL is information a web browser sends to a destination page, typically when you click a link, containing the URL of the last page the browser visited.
Supporting quotations
A pixel tag is a type of technology placed on a website or within the body of an email for the purpose of tracking certain activity, such as views of a website or when an email is opened.
The Referrer URL contains the URL of the last webpage the browser visited.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
Key term: sensitive personal information covers topics like medical facts, race or ethnicity, beliefs and sexuality
The glossary describes sensitive personal information as a particular category of personal information relating to topics such as confidential medical facts, racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, or sexuality. This is the category for which the policy says Google asks explicit consent before sharing outside Google and which it excludes from personalized-ad targeting.
Supporting quotations
This is a particular category of personal information relating to topics such as confidential medical facts, racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, or sexuality.
Key term: server logs automatically record request details such as IP address, browser, time, URL and cookie ID
The glossary says that, like most websites, Google's servers automatically record the page requests made when you visit its sites. These server logs typically include your web request, Internet Protocol address, browser type, browser language, the date and time of your request, and one or more cookies that may uniquely identify your browser. A sample entry for a search for "cars" is explained: the IP address assigned by your internet provider, the date and time of the query, the requested URL including the search query, the browser and operating system, and a unique cookie ID assigned to the computer the first time it visited Google.
Supporting quotations
Like most websites, our servers automatically record the page requests made when you visit our sites.
These “server logs” typically include your web request, Internet Protocol address, browser type, browser language, the date and time of your request, and one or more cookies that may uniquely identify your browser.
is the Internet Protocol address assigned to the user by the user’s ISP
is the requested URL, including the search query
is the unique cookie ID assigned to this particular computer the first time it visited Google
Qualifications & exceptions
The sample entry is illustrative; the cookie ID shown in the sample entry and the one explained under it differ in the source text.
"Typically include" means the contents can vary.
Not stated here
How long server logs are kept is not stated in this entry; the retention section says advertising data in server logs is deleted or anonymized after a set period.
Linking & Identification · Context
Key term: unique identifiers recognize a browser, app or device for security, syncing, preferences and advertising
The glossary defines a unique identifier as a string of characters that can uniquely identify a browser, app or device. Identifiers vary in how permanent they are, whether users can reset them and how they can be accessed. They can be used for security and fraud detection, syncing services such as your email inbox, remembering preferences and providing personalized advertising. On non-browser platforms they recognize a specific device or app; for example the Advertising ID provides relevant advertising on Android devices and can be managed in device settings. Manufacturer-built identifiers such as an IMEI number can also be used to customize a service to your device or analyze device issues.
Supporting quotations
A unique identifier is a string of characters that can be used to uniquely identify a browser, app, or device.
Different identifiers vary in how permanent they are, whether they can be reset by users, and how they can be accessed.
Unique identifiers can be used for various purposes, including security and fraud detection, syncing services such as your email inbox, remembering your preferences, and providing personalized advertising.
a unique identifier such as the Advertising ID is used to provide relevant advertising on Android devices, and can be managed in your device’s settings
Unique identifiers may also be incorporated into a device by its manufacturer
Qualifications & exceptions
You can configure your browser to refuse cookies or be told when one is sent, but that does not control device-level identifiers such as the Advertising ID, which are managed in device settings.
Data Access & Collection · Context
Saved activity may include a general area of at least 3 sq km or 1,000 people; past areas can estimate location
Google explains that if you are signed in and have Search Services History or Web & App Activity on, activity data on Google sites, apps and services that use those settings may be saved as history in your account. Some activity may include information about the general area you were in. When you search using a general area, the search uses an area of at least 3 sq km, or expands until the area represents the locations of at least 1,000 people, which Google says helps protect your privacy. Depending on personalization settings such as Personalized Recommendations in Search services, areas you searched from in the past may be used to estimate a relevant location for later searches. You can view and control Search Services History and Web & App Activity in My Activity.
Supporting quotations
if you’re signed in to your Google Account and have Search Services History or Web & App Activity turned on, your activity data on Google sites, apps, and services that use those settings may be saved as history in your Google Account
Some activity may include information about the general area you were in when using the Google service.
your search will use an area of at least 3 sq km, or expand until the area represents the locations of at least 1,000 people
areas that you have searched from in the past may be used to estimate a relevant location for your search
You can view and control your Search Services History and Web & App Activity at
Qualifications & exceptions
Saving depends on the history settings being on; past-area use depends on personalization settings.
Linking & Identification · Company practice
Sites and apps that use Google services share information with Google regardless of browser or Incognito mode
Google explains that websites and apps that integrate Google services like ads and analytics share information with Google. It says this information is shared regardless of which browser or browser mode you use: although Incognito mode in Chrome can help keep your browsing private from other people who use your device, third-party sites and apps that integrate Google services still share information with Google when you visit them. It says you can learn about ways to control the information shared when you visit sites and apps that use Google services. Elsewhere Google adds that data from Google Analytics can be linked by the customer and by Google to cookies related to visits to other sites and apps.
Supporting quotations
Websites and apps that integrate Google services like ads and analytics share information with us.
This information is shared regardless of which browser or browser mode you use.
although Incognito mode in Chrome can help keep your browsing private from other people who use your device, third party sites and apps that integrate our services still share information with Google when you visit them
You can learn more about some of the ways you can control the information that is shared when you visit or interact with sites and apps that use Google services.
data generated through Google Analytics can be linked by the Google Analytics customer and by Google to cookies and other technologies that are related to visits to other websites and apps
Qualifications & exceptions
Incognito protects against other people who use the same device; it does not stop the sharing described here.
Ads can follow your viewing and your approximate location from your IP address
Google gives examples of ad relevance: if you watch baking videos on YouTube, you may see more ads related to baking as you browse the web, and Google may use your IP address to determine your approximate location so it can serve ads for a nearby pizza delivery service if you search for "pizza". It links to explanations of Google ads and why you may see particular ads.
Supporting quotations
if you watch videos about baking on YouTube, you may see more ads that relate to baking as you browse the web
We also may use your IP address to determine your approximate location, so that we can serve you ads for a nearby pizza delivery service if you search for “pizza.”
Qualifications & exceptions
These are illustrative examples of the personalized-ads and location uses described in the body of the policy; ad personalization depends on your settings.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Merchants can upload loyalty-card data for Google to use in search, shopping results and ad measurement
As an example of information Google receives from partners to provide advertising and research services on their behalf, merchants may upload data from their loyalty-card programs so they can include loyalty information in search or shopping results or better understand the performance of their ad campaigns. Google says it only provides aggregated reports to advertisers that do not reveal information about individual people.
Supporting quotations
merchants may upload data from their loyalty-card programs so that they can include loyalty information in search or shopping results, or better understand the performance of their ad campaigns
We only provide aggregated reports to advertisers that don’t reveal information about individual people.
Qualifications & exceptions
The aggregated-reports limit is about what advertisers receive from Google.
Not stated here
The policy does not say how uploaded loyalty-card data is matched to individuals.
Data Access & Collection · Context
Android devices with Google apps include phones, cameras, vehicles, wearables and TVs running Google Play Services
Google explains that "Android devices with Google apps" include devices sold by Google or one of its partners, and include phones, cameras, vehicles, wearables and televisions. These devices use Google Play Services and other pre-installed apps that include services such as Gmail, Maps, your phone camera and dialer, text-to-speech, keyboard input and security features. This is the device group to which the periodic contact with Google servers described in the collection section applies.
Supporting quotations
Android devices with Google apps include devices sold by Google or one of our partners and include phones, cameras, vehicles, wearables, and televisions.
These devices use Google Play Services and other pre-installed apps that include services like Gmail, Maps, your phone’s camera and phone dialer, text-to-speech conversion, keyboard input, and security features.
Use & Processing · Company practice
Delivery examples: IP address, cookies, uploaded photos, flight emails and purchase details are used to run services
Google lists examples of using information to deliver services: the IP address assigned to your device is used to send requested data, such as loading a YouTube video; unique identifiers stored in cookies help authenticate you as the person who should have access to your Google Account; photos and videos you upload to Google Photos are used to help you create albums, collages and other creations; a flight confirmation email you receive may be used to create a "check-in" button in your Gmail; and when you buy services or physical goods, information such as your shipping address or delivery instructions is used to process, fulfill and deliver your order and to provide support.
Supporting quotations
Examples of how we use your information to deliver our services include:
We use the IP address assigned to your device to send you the data you requested
We use unique identifiers stored in cookies on your device to help us authenticate you as the person who should have access to your Google Account
Photos and videos you upload to Google Photos are used to help you create albums, collages, and other creations that you can share.
A flight confirmation email you receive may be used to create a “check-in” button that appears in your Gmail
We use this information for things like processing, fulfilling, and delivering your order, and to provide support in connection with the product or service you purchase.
Qualifications & exceptions
The list is of examples ("include"), not an exhaustive statement of service-delivery uses.
The flight-email example shows that the content of emails you receive can be used for features within the same product.
Security & Safeguards · Company practice
If Google detects spam, malware, illegal content or other abuse, it may disable your account or report to authorities
When Google detects spam, malware, illegal content (including child sexual abuse and exploitation material) or other forms of abuse on its systems in violation of its policies, it says it may disable your account or take other appropriate action. In certain circumstances it may also report the violation to appropriate authorities.
Supporting quotations
When we detect spam, malware, illegal content
and other forms of abuse on our systems in violation of our policies, we may disable your account or take other appropriate action
In certain circumstances, we may also report the violation to appropriate authorities.
Qualifications & exceptions
"May" and "in certain circumstances" are the policy's own limits.
Use & Processing · Company practice
More examples: device info picks devices and protects accounts; system monitoring and cookie analysis improve products
Google gives further examples. Information from your devices can help you decide which device to use to install an app or view a movie bought on Google Play, and is also used to help protect your account. Google analyzes how people interact with advertising to improve ad performance. It continuously monitors its systems for problems and, when a feature is faulty, reviews activity information collected before the problem started so it can fix things more quickly. It also uses cookies to analyze how people interact with services, which can reveal that a task takes too long, so it can redesign the feature.
Supporting quotations
we can use information from your devices to help you decide which device you’d like to use to install an app or view a movie you buy from Google Play
We also use this information to help protect your account.
we analyze how people interact with advertising to improve the performance of our ads
if we find something wrong with a specific feature, reviewing activity information collected before the problem started allows us to fix things more quickly
we use cookies to analyze how people interact with our services
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
With Google Location services on Android, your device sends location, sensor, nearby cell and Wi-Fi data to Google
If you use Google's Location services on Android, Google says it can improve the performance of apps that rely on your location, such as Google Maps. In that case your device sends information to Google about its location, sensors such as the accelerometer, and nearby cell towers and Wi-Fi access points, including MAC address and signal strength, and these together help determine your location. You can use your device settings to enable Google Location services.
Supporting quotations
If you use Google’s Location services on Android, we can improve the performance of apps that rely on your location, like Google Maps.
your device sends information to Google about its location, sensors (like accelerometer), and nearby cell towers and Wi-Fi access points (like MAC address and signal strength)
You can use your device settings to enable Google Location services.
Qualifications & exceptions
The transmission described applies if you use Google's Location services; enabling is through device settings.
Google says its legal team reviews every government data request and pushes back on overly broad ones
Google explains that, like other technology and communications companies, it regularly receives requests from governments and courts around the world to disclose user data. It says its approach to complying rests on respect for the privacy and security of data you store with Google, that its legal team reviews every request regardless of type, and that it frequently pushes back when a request appears overly broad or does not follow the correct process. It points to its Transparency Report.
Supporting quotations
Google regularly receives requests from governments and courts around the world to disclose user data.
Our legal team reviews each and every request, regardless of type, and we frequently push back when a request appears to be overly broad or doesn’t follow the correct process.
Qualifications & exceptions
This describes a general approach; it does not state outcomes of any particular request.
Linking & Identification · Company practice
Google Analytics data can be linked by the customer and Google to cookies from visits to other sites and apps
As an example of ad and analytics services linking information, Google says a customer may want to use its Google Analytics data to create more relevant ads or analyze its traffic. Using Google's systems, data generated through Google Analytics can be linked by the Analytics customer and by Google to cookies and other technologies related to visits to other websites and apps.
Supporting quotations
a customer may want to use its Google Analytics data to create more relevant ads, or to further analyze its traffic
data generated through Google Analytics can be linked by the Google Analytics customer and by Google to cookies and other technologies that are related to visits to other websites and apps
Qualifications & exceptions
This example describes what linking is possible for an Analytics customer; the policy elsewhere says association with your personal information depends on account settings.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Microphone, camera and uploads feed Google services; after "Hey Google" it records a few seconds before the command
Google explains that you can interact with many services using your device's microphone or camera or by uploading multimedia such as files, images, screenshots, audio and video. When your device detects an audio activation command such as "Hey Google", Google records your voice and audio plus a few seconds before the activation.
Supporting quotations
you can interact with many Google services using your device’s microphone or camera, or by uploading multimedia like files, images, screenshots, audio, and video
When your device detects an audio activation command, like “Hey Google,” Google records your voice and audio plus a few seconds before the activation.
Qualifications & exceptions
The pre-activation recording is limited to "a few seconds"; the policy does not say here how long recordings are kept.
Not stated here
Retention of voice and audio recordings is not stated in this note.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Google shares data about content-removal requests with Lumen for research on transparency and accountability
As an example of protecting its users and the public, Google says that to prevent abuse and increase transparency and accountability over online content moderation, it shares data about requests for removal of content from its services with Lumen, which collects and analyzes these requests to facilitate research to help internet users understand their rights.
Supporting quotations
Google shares data about requests for removal of content from our services with Lumen, which collects and analyzes these requests to facilitate research to help Internet users understand their rights
Not stated here
The policy does not say whether the shared data identifies the people who made removal requests.
Linking & Identification · Context
Google says over 2 million non-Google websites and apps partner with it to show ads
Google states that there are over 2 million non-Google websites and apps that partner with Google to show ads. This indicates the scale of third-party sites and apps through which Google ad and analytics services operate.
Supporting quotations
There are over 2 million non-Google websites and apps that partner with Google to show ads.
Charges & Financial Obligations · Company practice
Payment methods work across Google; it may ask for a tax ID or ID verification and may use payment data to check age
Google explains that if you add a credit card or other payment method to your Google Account, you can use it to buy things across its services, such as apps in the Play Store. It may also ask for other information, like a business tax ID, to help process payment, and in some cases may need to verify your identity and ask for information to do so. It may also use payment information to verify that you meet age requirements, for example if you enter an incorrect birthday indicating you are not old enough to have a Google Account.
Supporting quotations
if you add a credit card or other payment method to your Google Account, you can use it to buy things across our services
We may also ask for other information, like a business tax ID, to help process your payment.
In some cases, we may also need to verify your identity and may ask you for information to do this.
We may also use payment information to verify that you meet age requirements
Qualifications & exceptions
The age check is described as something Google "may" do and gives a specific example.
Use & Processing · Company practice
You may see personalized ads based on information from an advertiser, such as your visit to its website
Google says you may also see personalized ads based on information from the advertiser. For example, if you shopped on an advertiser's website, that advertiser can use the visit information to show you ads.
Supporting quotations
You may also see personalized ads based on information from the advertiser.
If you shopped on an advertiser's website, for example, they can use that visit information to show you ads.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
A phone number you add can be used for account recovery, helping people find you and making ads more relevant
If you add your phone number to your account, Google says it can be used for different purposes across Google services, depending on your settings. Examples: helping you access your account if you forget your password, helping people find and connect with you, and making the ads you see more relevant to you.
Supporting quotations
If you add your phone number to your account, it can be used for different purposes across Google services, depending on your settings.
your phone number can be used to help you access your account if you forget your password, help people find and connect with you, and make the ads you see more relevant to you
Qualifications & exceptions
Uses depend on your settings.
Data Access & Collection · User right or choice
Home and work places you label can be used for directions, nearer results and ads, and you can edit or delete them
You might choose to save places that matter to you, such as home or work, to your Google Account. If you set home or work addresses, Google says they can be used to help you do things more easily, such as getting directions or finding results closer to home or work, and for ads. You can edit or delete your home or work addresses anytime in your Google Account.
Supporting quotations
You might choose to save places to your Google Account that are important to you, such as your home or your work.
If you set your home or work addresses, they can be used to help you do things more easily, such as getting directions or finding results closer to your home or work, and for ads.
You can edit or delete your home or work addresses anytime in your
Security & Safeguards · Company practice
Information about security threats can help Google notify you if your account may be compromised
Google gives the example that information about security threats can help it notify you if it thinks your account has been compromised, at which point it can help you take steps to protect your account.
Supporting quotations
information about security threats can help us notify you if we think your account has been compromised
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google may collect public online information to train AI models and may index and display your business information
As an example of collecting from publicly accessible sources, Google says it may collect information that is publicly available online or from other public sources to help train its AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps and Cloud AI capabilities. It also says that if your business's information appears on a website, it may index and display it on Google services.
Supporting quotations
we may collect information that’s publicly available online or from other public sources to help train Google’s AI models and build products and features like Google Translate, Gemini Apps, and Cloud AI capabilities
if your business’s information appears on a website, we may index and display it on Google services
Qualifications & exceptions
The statement is about publicly available information, and uses "may".
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Blocking the "lbcs" cookie would stop Google Docs from working as expected
Google gives an example of its services relying on cookies: a cookie called "lbcs" makes it possible to open many Google Docs in one browser, and blocking this cookie would prevent Google Docs from working as expected.
Supporting quotations
we use a cookie called ‘lbcs’ that makes it possible for you to open many Google Docs in one browser
Blocking this cookie would prevent Google Docs from working as expected.
Security & Safeguards · Company practice
IP and cookie analysis guards against automated abuse; Gmail shows recent account activity including IP addresses
Google gives examples of using information for safety and reliability. It collects and analyzes IP addresses and cookie data to protect against automated abuse such as sending spam to Gmail users, fraudulent clicking on ads and denial-of-service attacks. The "last account activity" feature in Gmail can help you find out if and when someone accessed your email without your knowledge, showing recent activity such as the IP addresses that accessed your mail, the associated location, and the date and time of access.
Supporting quotations
Collecting and analyzing IP addresses and cookie data to protect against automated abuse.
The “last account activity” feature in Gmail can help you find out if and when someone accessed your email without your knowledge.
This feature shows you information about recent activity in Gmail, such as the IP addresses that accessed your mail, the associated location, and the date and time of access.
Use & Processing · User right or choice
With Personalized Recommendations on, results use your past activity; signed-out customization can be turned off
Google explains that when you are signed in to your Google Account and have the Personalized Recommendations in Search services control enabled, you can get more relevant search results based on your previous searches and activity from other Google services. You may also get customized search results even when signed out. If you do not want that level of customization, you can search and browse privately or turn off signed-out search customization.
Supporting quotations
when you’re signed in to your Google Account and have the Personalized Recommendations in Search services control enabled, you can get more relevant search results that are based on your previous searches and activity from other Google services
You may also get customized search results even when you’re signed out.
If you don’t want this level of search customization, you can
Qualifications & exceptions
Signed-in personalization depends on the control being enabled; signed-out customization happens unless you turn it off or browse privately.
Use & Processing · Company commitment
Ad topics come from your activity, and Google says it excludes sensitive categories and requires the same of advertisers
Google explains that when showing personalized ads it uses topics it thinks might interest you based on your activity, such as "Cooking and Recipes" or "Air Travel". It says it does not use topics or show personalized ads based on sensitive categories like race, religion, sexual orientation or health, and that it requires the same from advertisers that use its services.
Supporting quotations
When showing you personalized ads, we use topics that we think might be of interest to you based on your activity.
We don’t use topics or show personalized ads based on sensitive categories like race, religion, sexual orientation, or health.
require the same from advertisers
Qualifications & exceptions
The limit is stated for personalized ads and topics, not for all uses of such information.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Device sensors like the accelerometer and gyroscope can help Google understand your location and movement
Google explains that your device may have sensors that can be used to better understand your location and movement; for example an accelerometer can be used to determine your speed and a gyroscope to figure out your direction of travel.
Supporting quotations
Your device may have sensors that can be used to better understand your location and movement.
an accelerometer can be used to determine your speed and a gyroscope to figure out your direction of travel
Qualifications & exceptions
"May" and "can be used" describe capability, not a statement that all sensors are used for all users.
Security & Safeguards · Context
Google operates data centers around the world to keep products available
Google says it operates data centers located around the world to help keep its products continuously available to users.
Supporting quotations
we operate data centers located
Data Access & Collection · Context
Calling and messaging services include Voice, Meet, Gmail, Chat, Duo and Fi
Google lists examples of the services whose calls and messages can produce call and message log information: Google Voice for calls, texts and voicemail; Google Meet for video calls; Gmail for email; Google Chat for messages; Google Duo for video calls and messages; and Google Fi for a phone plan.
Supporting quotations
Examples of these services include:
Google Voice, for making and receiving calls, sending text messages, and managing voicemail
Google Meet, for making and receiving video calls
Gmail, for sending and receiving emails
Google Chat, for sending and receiving messages
Google Duo, for making and receiving video calls and sending and receiving messages
Google Fi, for a phone plan
Qualifications & exceptions
The list is introduced as "examples".
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Google Trends samples web searches and publicly shares aggregated popularity estimates
Google explains that when many people begin searching for something, it can reveal trends. Google Trends samples Google web searches to estimate the popularity of searches over a period and shares those results publicly in aggregated terms.
Supporting quotations
Google Trends samples Google web searches to estimate the popularity of searches over a certain period of time and shares those results publicly in aggregated terms.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Fitness products like Fitbit, Pixel Watch, Nest and Google Fit collect body measurements and activity data
Google explains that if you use fitness products and apps it offers, such as Fitbit, Pixel Watch, Nest or Google Fit, it collects data you provide, like height and weight, and information from the apps and devices, such as sleep patterns, heart rate, skin temperature, calories burned and steps taken.
Supporting quotations
If you use fitness products and apps we offer, such as Fitbit, Pixel Watch, Nest or Google Fit, we collect data you provide, like your height and weight.
We also collect information from these apps and devices, such as your sleep patterns, heart rate, skin temperature, calories burned, and steps taken.
Qualifications & exceptions
Applies if you use those fitness products and apps.
Content & IP Rights · User right or choice
You can delete a Blogger blog, a Google Site you own, or reviews you left in the Play Store
As examples of deleting content from specific Google services, Google says you can delete your blog from Blogger or a Google Site you own from Google Sites, and delete reviews you have left on apps, games and other content in the Play Store.
Supporting quotations
For example, you can delete [your blog](https://support.google.com/blogger?p=privpol_blog) from Blogger or [a Google Site you own](https://support.google.com/sites?p=privpol_delete) from Google Sites.
You can also delete [reviews](https://support.google.com/googleplay?p=privpol_review) you’ve left on apps, games, and other content in the Play Store.
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
YouTube creators, advertisers and merchants can use measurement companies and cookies to learn about their audiences
Google explains that it allows YouTube creators and advertisers to work with measurement companies to learn about the audience of their YouTube videos or ads using cookies or similar technologies. Merchants on its shopping pages use cookies to understand how many different people see their product listings.
Supporting quotations
we allow YouTube creators and advertisers to work with measurement companies to learn about the audience of their YouTube videos or ads, using cookies or similar technologies
merchants on our shopping pages, who use cookies to understand how many different people see their product listings
Not stated here
The measurement companies and their own data practices are not described.
Data Access & Collection · Restriction or exception
Chrome browsing history is saved to your account only if you have turned on Chrome sync with your Google Account
Google clarifies that your Chrome browsing history is only saved to your Google Account if you have enabled Chrome synchronization with your Google Account.
Supporting quotations
Your Chrome browsing history is only saved to your account if you’ve enabled Chrome synchronization with your Google Account.
Qualifications & exceptions
This conditions the "Chrome browsing history you have synced" item in the activity list.
Gmail suggests addresses based on the people you contact most frequently
As an example of using information about the people who matter most to you online, Google says that when you type an address in the To, Cc or Bcc field of an email you are composing, Gmail will suggest addresses based on the people you contact most frequently.
Supporting quotations
when you type an address in the To, Cc, or Bcc field of an email you're composing, Gmail will suggest addresses based on the people you
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Company practice
Google processes information about content-removal requests to assess them and to promote transparency and prevent abuse
As an example of using information to benefit the public, Google says it processes information about requests to remove content from its services under its content removal policies or applicable law, to assess the request and to ensure transparency, improve accountability and prevent abuse and fraud in these practices.
Supporting quotations
we process information about
from our services under Google's content removal policies or applicable law to assess the request, and to ensure transparency, improve accountability and prevent abuse and fraud in these practices
Sharing & Disclosure · Company practice
Google may report use statistics to rights holders and show results for sites with public information about you
As examples of processing information for third parties, Google says it processes your information to report use statistics to rights holders about how their content was used in its services. It may also process your information if people search for your name and it displays search results for sites containing publicly available information about you.
Supporting quotations
we process your information to report use statistics to rights holders about how their content was used in our services
We may also process your information if people search for your name and we display search results for sites containing publicly available information about you.
Qualifications & exceptions
Both examples use "may" or describe a reporting practice, not a complete list of third-party processing.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
The policy says it addresses U.S. state privacy laws including California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut and Utah
Google lists U.S. state privacy laws that its state-law disclosures address, beginning with the California Consumer Privacy Act, the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act, the Colorado Privacy Act, the Connecticut Act Concerning Personal Data Privacy and Online Monitoring and the Utah Consumer Privacy Act, and continuing with the Washington My Health My Data Act, Nevada Senate Bill 370, the Florida Digital Bill of Rights, the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act and the Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act.
Supporting quotations
These laws include:
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA)
Colorado Privacy Act (CPA)
Connecticut Act Concerning Personal Data Privacy and Online Monitoring (CTDPA)
Utah Consumer Privacy Act (UCPA)
Washington My Health My Data Act (MHDM)
Nevada Senate Bill 370
Florida Digital Bill of Rights (FDBR)
Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA)
Oregon Consumer Privacy Act (OCPA)
Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act (MTCDPA)
Qualifications & exceptions
The list names statutes; it does not say how each applies to a given person or what each requires.
Legal Rights & Agreement Rules · Context
The list of U.S. state privacy laws continues with New Jersey, New Hampshire, Nebraska, Iowa and others
The list continues with New Jersey Senate Bill 332, New Hampshire Senate Bill 255, the Nebraska Data Privacy Act, the Iowa Consumer Data Protection Act, the Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act, the Tennessee Information Protection Act, the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act, the Maryland Online Data Privacy Act of 2024, the Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act, the Kentucky Consumer Data Protection Act and the Rhode Island Data Transparency and Privacy Protection Act.
Supporting quotations
New Jersey Senate Bill 332
New Hampshire Senate Bill 255
Nebraska Data Privacy Act (NEDPA)
Iowa Consumer Data Protection Act (IACDPA)
Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act (DPDPA)
Tennessee Information Protection Act (TIPA)
Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act (MNCDPA)
Maryland Online Data Privacy Act of 2024 (MDODPA)
Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act (INCDPA)
Kentucky Consumer Data Protection Act (KCDPA)
Rhode Island Data Transparency and Privacy Protection Act (RIDTPPA)
Qualifications & exceptions
The list names statutes; it does not say what each requires or how it applies to a given person.
Linking & Identification · Company practice
Depending on settings, Google draws on other products for search results, autocomplete, the Google app and Assistant
Google gives examples of using information across its services, depending on your available settings. When signed in and searching on Google, you can see public web results alongside relevant information from content in other Google products such as Gmail or Calendar, like flight status, restaurant and hotel reservations or photos. If you have emailed someone via Gmail and want to add them to a Google Doc or Calendar event, Google can autocomplete their email address as you type their name. The Google app can use data stored in other Google products to show personalized content, such as news articles and sports scores, if you have searches stored in Search Services History and Personalized Recommendations in Search services turned on. If you connect your Google Account to Google Home, you can manage your information and get things done through the Google Assistant, such as adding Calendar events or getting your schedule.
Supporting quotations
Depending on your available settings, some examples of how we use the information we collect across our services include:
When you’re signed in to your Google Account and search on Google, you can see search results from the public web, along with relevant information from the content you have in other Google products, like Gmail or Google Calendar.
If you have communicated with someone via Gmail and want to add them to a Google Doc or an event in Google Calendar, Google makes it easy to do so by autocompleting their email address when you start to type in their name.
if you have searches stored in your Search Services History and have turned on your Personalized Recommendations in Search services setting, the Google app can show you news articles and other information about your interests
If you connect your Google Account to your Google Home, you can manage your information and get things done through the Google Assistant.
Qualifications & exceptions
These examples are conditioned on "depending on your available settings" and, for the Google app example, on specific history and personalization settings being on.
Linking & Identification · User right or choice
For users in the EU, the choices you make about linking services affect how certain services can use data across Google
Google says that if you are a user in the EU, the decisions you make on linking services will affect how certain Google services can use data across its services. The policy does not describe the linking options here.
Supporting quotations
If you’re a user in the EU, the decisions you make on linking services will affect how certain Google services can use the data across our services.
Qualifications & exceptions
Applies to users in the EU; the policy's statements about cross-service use do not say here whether the same choices exist elsewhere.
Not stated here
The linking choices and which services are affected are not described in this entry.
Data Access & Collection · Company practice
Google measures ad views and interactions, including mouse movement over an ad, to report to advertisers in aggregate
Google explains that it collects information about views and interactions with ads so it can provide aggregated reports to advertisers, such as whether it served an ad on a page and whether the ad was likely seen. It may also measure other interactions, such as how you move your mouse over an ad or whether you interact with the page on which the ad appears.
Supporting quotations
we collect information about views and interactions with ads so we can provide aggregated reports to advertisers, like telling them whether we served their ad on a page and whether the ad was likely seen by a viewer
We may also measure other interactions, such as how you move your mouse over an ad or if you interact with the page on which the ad appears.
Qualifications & exceptions
Reports to advertisers are described as aggregated.
Linking & Identification · Company practice
Partner sites and apps may share your activity with Google, which may tie it to your personal information
Google explains that activity on other sites and apps might come from your use of Google services, like syncing your account with Chrome or visiting sites and apps that partner with Google. Many websites and apps partner with Google to improve their content and services; for example a site might use Google's advertising services such as AdSense, analytics tools such as Google Analytics, or embed content such as YouTube videos. These services may share information about your activity with Google and, depending on your account settings and the products in use, for instance when a partner uses Google Analytics together with Google's advertising services, this data may be associated with your personal information.
Supporting quotations
This activity might come from your use of Google services, like from syncing your account with Chrome or your visits to sites and apps that partner with Google.
a website might use our advertising services (like AdSense) or analytics tools (like Google Analytics), or it might embed other content (such as videos from YouTube)
These services may share information about your activity with Google and, depending on your
this data may be associated with your personal information
Qualifications & exceptions
Association with your personal information depends on your account settings and the products in use.