Google Introduces New Search History and Privacy Controls for AI-Powered Features

Google is introducing new privacy settings that give users more control over how activity from its Search services is stored and used. The rollout separates history collection from personalization, allowing people to save their activity without necessarily using it to tailor recommendations.

The changes, first reported by BleepingComputer, will appear in users’ Google Accounts over the coming days. They affect several Google products, including Search, Maps, Shopping, Hotels, Flights, Translate, News, and Google Play. Google has also published support documentation explaining how the new settings work.

Search history and personalization are no longer tied together

Until now, users primarily managed Search history and personalization through the broad Web & App Activity setting. Google is now splitting those functions into two separate controls: Search Services History, and Personalized Recommendations.

Search Services History determines whether activity from supported Google services is saved to a user’s Google Account. That activity can include searches, Maps usage, Shopping queries, Flights and Hotels activity, Translate interactions, News browsing, and other Search-related activity.

Google says storing this information helps users revisit previous searches and continue newer interactive Search experiences.

Saved media is now part of Search Services History

One of the biggest additions is a new Save Media subsetting within Search Services History.

When enabled, Google may save media from Search interactions, including images, files, audio, and video.

Examples include photos used with Google Lens, voice searches, and media shared during Search Live conversations.

According to Google, saving this media makes it easier to continue AI-powered Search experiences and revisit previous Lens searches. The company also says the data may be used to develop and improve Google services, including AI models and safety systems, while applying privacy protections.

Users can disable Save Media independently or delete individual media items from their Search history at any time.

Existing settings will carry over automatically

If Web & App Activity is already enabled, Google says Search Services History will automatically be enabled after the transition. The Save Media option will also be turned on by default in that scenario.

Existing auto-delete preferences will transfer to the new Search Services History setting, allowing users to keep their current retention period. Users can still manually review or delete saved activity whenever they choose.

Personalized recommendations become an independent setting

Google is also introducing a standalone Personalized Recommendations control.

This setting determines whether Google uses saved activity to personalize Search services.

In practice, the change means users can choose to keep their search history for convenience without allowing Google to use that history for personalized recommendations.

Google says changes made to Personalized Recommendations will not affect Search Services History, and vice versa. Both settings will also operate independently from Web & App Activity after the migration.

Google Play gets similar privacy controls

Google Play is receiving the same treatment with two new settings: Play History and Personalization in Play.

The settings may appear even for users who rarely or never use Google Play. Google says the initial configuration will reflect each user’s previous Web & App Activity and Search personalization preferences.

Like Search Services History, Play History will inherit existing auto-delete settings, which users can change at any time.

Users should review the new settings

While Google says the update provides more granular privacy controls than the previous all-in-one approach, users may want to review the new settings once they become available, particularly if Web & App Activity is already enabled.

The rollout also introduces new defaults for media saved from AI-powered Search experiences, making it worth checking whether the Save Media option matches individual privacy preferences.

In other Google news, the company recently introduced new verification rules for financial advisers, confirmed it will use IP addresses for ads in Europe, and was ordered by UK regulators to make Search rankings more transparent.