To add one datum, I turned off location history thinking that meant that Google would use my _current_ location for Maps, Search etc while not storing my _past_ locations. Their interface and messaging did not succeed in dissuading me from this belief, despite the fact that I was explicitly looking for messaging and settings related to protecting my privacy.<p>Was I naive to believe this was even possible in the first place? Probably. I used to think Google were basically good guys, so I thought that when they said something they actually meant it, and I was willing to forgive them for minor mistakes and bad press. This is the first time I actually feel like they've lied to me.<p>I'll be migrating my personal Google accounts elsewhere. Suggestions are welcome for good alternatives, free/non-free/whatever, that offer effective privacy controls.
From time to time I visit <a href="https://myactivity.google.com/myactivity" rel="nofollow">https://myactivity.google.com/myactivity</a> and <i>every time</i> I need to turn something off again.
This whole story is about the name "Location History" aka timeline being confusing as people think it means a location tracking privacy setting while it's actually a Google product name. Can we rename it to "Location History product poorly named"?
I bought my first smartphone about 6 months ago - a BLU R2. Really like the phone, and here's how I use it:<p>1. I use puretalkusa.com's $20/month phone plan. It comes with 20MB of data per month, then throttles.<p>2. Disabled Cellular Data<p>3. Disabled WIFI<p>4. Never setup or signed in to my Google account from the phone.<p>5. Disabled anything that gave me any pause about privacy, including Location services.<p>6. Covered the fingerprint reader with electrical tape.<p>And still, the other day my phone decided to reboot itself in the middle of the day. I only know this because it played a little jingle. After the reboot, Location services was enabled again. Hmm... I disabled it, but it made me wonder if this wasn't some kind of forced reboot so someone could ping my location. This has happened once before, in the middle of the night - a good time to find out where someone lives.
"Turning off" location history == Don't show me my location history. It's not like Google (or Apple) is going to actually stop tracking you.<p>I love showing iPhone users the section in Settings where all their location history is. Most have no idea it's there.
People can stalk people. Beyond a certain threshold (defined by jurisdiction), it's illegal.<p>Why wouldn't this apply to corporations? To (legal) <i>entity?</i><p>Corporations and their lobbyists spend a lot of time, money, and effort claiming they are "people". For example, with respect to their "free speech" -- meaning, lately, unlimited spending on political campaigns.<p>Well, ok then, I would propose that they can stalk, <i>like people.</i><p>Oh, but wait, there's the catch. They've already beaten me, with their outsized pocketbooks, to the very people who would legally define this.<p>In the U.S., at least, the law is a _____. Pardon my, albeit self-censored, decidedly improper language. But sometimes, crudeness is the rhetoric of clarity -- in all its unpleasantness and offensiveness.
It is becoming too easy to pick on Google. There are many Web apps that use location. BestBuy, just to pick one arbitrary example, will ask permission to discover my location in order to show me my nearest stores. This is, of course, very useful, and I am happy this service exists. What I do not know is whether or not BestBuy or many other companies are sharing this information with other companies. My assumption is that BestBuy et. al are using a middleware web service, and that company probably makes money selling location information to advertisers.<p>For me it is just depressingly hopless: as soon as I go on the Internet of phone network, I have given up a lot of privacy.
Still don't understand why this story blowing out all of a sudden.<p>It's common knowledge that the biggest internet ad company likes your data and wants it for its recommendation systems.<p>If you want to turn off Location History, which is a feature, a product in itself, you can.<p>If you don't want your searches to be tracked, use another engine like DuckDuckGo or Qwant. If you still want Google, you can disable the location tracking. In addition, they provide a tool to see exactly what they store and you can delete any entry.<p>Also, of course Maps will want to know your location, you can turn off your GPS anyway. The only troubling point is the storage of the location at the opening for no reason I don't know if you can disable this.