Google has quietly revised the promise it made for nearly a decade, that the personal contents of Gmail, Drive and Photos would never be used to tailor advertising, and the reason lies in the company's push to fold its new AI assistants into the economics that sustain it. Such a shift asks an old question of the digital age: how much of a person's private life a company may draw upon when the tools it builds are hungry for data and expensive to run. The change does not open the doors wide, since personalised advertising still waits on a user's own choice to enable certain AI features, yet it m
Google's Revised Privacy Policy Opens Gmail, Drive and Photos Data to Personalised Ads
A clean no became a conditional.
Mark
So what actually changed here?
Mimi
Google's policy used to say flatly that it doesn't show personalised ads based on your Drive, Gmail or Photos content. That sentence is gone in the revised policy.
Mark
Does that mean Google is reading my email for ads now?
Mimi
Not by default. The report says these services don't serve Google ads by default, and private data can't be used for ads unless you enable certain AI features like Personal Intelligence or Gemini extensions.
Luke
That distinction matters, and I'd hold onto it. The headline implies broad access, but the reporting describes an opt-in condition.
Mark
Then why are people upset?
Mimi
Because for nearly a decade the promise was a clean no. Now it's a conditional. For people who keep family photos and work files there, that feels like a breach of trust.
Luke
Worth noting the criticism is described in general terms. The report doesn't give numbers or name critics, so we can't say how widespread it is.
Mark
And why is Google doing it?
Mimi
The report ties it to linking advertising with Personal Intelligence in Gemini and AI Mode in Search, and says Google needs to monetise costly AI infrastructure.
Luke
That motive is the outlet's reading. Google pitches Personal Intelligence as a way to get specific answers. We haven't seen Google confirm the monetisation reasoning.
Mark
What should a reader do?
Mimi
Check the Data and privacy section of your Google Account, find the personalisation settings, and opt out if you turned something on unknowingly.
El Pulso
- Google's revised privacy policy quietly drops its long-standing pledge that Gmail, Drive and Photos content would never fuel personalised ads.
- Users who long stored personal memories and work files feel the reversal as a breach of trust, and criticism over privacy and corporate faithfulness is running hot.
- The shift is tied to Personal Intelligence in Gemini and AI Mode in Search, as Google tries to recoup the heavy cost of its new AI infrastructure.
- Personalised ads only activate for people who switched on certain AI features, so the exposure lands on those who enabled them without fully understanding the consequences.
- Users can opt out through the Data and privacy section of their Google Account, and the coming days will reveal how many have already acted or stayed unaware.
Google has quietly revised the promise it made for nearly a decade, that the personal contents of Gmail, Drive and Photos would never be used to tailor advertising, and the reason lies in the company's push to fold its new AI assistants into the economics that sustain it. Such a shift asks an old question of the digital age: how much of a person's private life a company may draw upon when the tools it builds are hungry for data and expensive to run. The change does not open the doors wide, since personalised advertising still waits on a user's own choice to enable certain AI features, yet it moves the boundary. For those who trusted the earlier words, the lesson is that a boundary once promised may be renegotiated in fine print, and that vigilance is now part of living with these services.
Google has changed its privacy policy so that material from Gmail, Google Photos and Drive can now be used to show personalised advertisements. Techeconomy reports that many users may not yet realise this has happened, and the change reaches people using Google services on Android and iOS alike.
The old wording had been unambiguous. Google's earlier policy stated plainly that it did not personalise ads based on content from Drive, Gmail or Photos, and for nearly ten years that promise placed the company's most intimate services beyond the reach of its advertising machine. The revised text quietly removes that assurance.
The reasoning, as the report frames it, is tied to Google's new generative AI tools. The company wants to link its advertising system with Personal Intelligence in Gemini and AI Mode in Search, features that draw on private app data to give users tailored answers. The report suggests Google must loosen its rules to earn returns on expensive AI infrastructure, and that many users will not be comfortable with the trade.
Still, there are limits. Personalised ads depend on users choosing to enable certain AI features, such as Personal Intelligence or Gemini extensions, so the default protection remains. The real risk falls on those who switched a feature on without meaning to or without understanding what it did. They can reverse the change in the Data and privacy section of their Google Account.
Criticism has nonetheless been sharp, with objections centred on privacy, corporate trust and the erosion of digital boundaries. For long-time users who keep family memories in Photos and working documents in Drive, the revision feels like a breach of faith. What comes next depends on how many people have already opted into Gemini's AI features and whether they check their settings. Anyone uncertain should review the Data and privacy page of their account and confirm what is switched on.
Google has changed its privacy policy so that information from Gmail, Google Photos and Drive can be used to show personalised ads. Techeconomy reports that many users may not realise it has happened.
The change applies to people using Google services on Android or iOS. Under the new policy draft, those three services do not serve Google ads by default, so Google is not automatically scanning your activity in them for targeted marketing. But the revision does mean you may receive customised ads built on your personal information.
The old wording was unambiguous. Google's earlier privacy policy stated: "We don't show you personalised ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail, or Photos." For nearly a decade, according to the report, Google promised that its most personal services were off-limits for ad personalisation. That promise is what the revised policy drops.
The reason, as the report frames it, lies in Google's new generative AI tools. The company is trying to connect its advertising system with Personal Intelligence in Gemini and AI Mode in Search. Google presents Personal Intelligence as a way to give users specific answers by drawing on data from their private apps. The report argues that Google needs to change the rules to earn money from its expensive new AI infrastructure, and that many users may not be comfortable with the shift.
There is an important limit on what the change allows. Google still cannot use your private data for ads unless you choose to enable certain AI features, such as Personal Intelligence or Gemini extensions. The practical risk falls on people who switched one of those on without meaning to, or without understanding what it did.
Those users can reverse it. In the Data and privacy section of a Google Account, they can go to the relevant personalisation settings and opt out. The report stresses that the change is not entirely bad news, given that default behaviour and the opt-in requirement remain in place.
Still, criticism has been strong. Many users have objected on grounds of privacy, corporate trust and what they describe as the erosion of digital boundaries. For long-time users who store personal memories in Photos and work files in Drive, the reversal feels like a breach of trust.
What to watch next is how many people have already opted into Gemini's AI features, and whether they check their settings. Anyone unsure should look at the Data and privacy page of their Google Account and confirm what is switched on.
Citas Notables
We don't show you personalised ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail, or Photos.— Google's previous privacy policy
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