Google has launched a bunch of new security and privacy features for its search engine, browser, email service and Android operating system as part of an online safety push. The tech giant revealed the new features in a blog during the Google I/O 2023 conference.
Among the features are tools to protect people from the dangers posed by AI such as ChatGPT. About This Image helps people to evaluate the reliability of visual content online. It does so via context such as when an image was first indexed by Google, where it may have first appeared, and where else it’s been seen online—for example, a news, social or fact-checking site.
Good news for Android users
There is also good news for Android users, as Google is introducing more ways of controlling your data in Android apps. The firm points to updates coming in Android 14 to improve transparency around how your data is used by apps. Starting with location data, you will receive permission requests when an app shares your information with third parties for advertising purposes.
You can use this information to decide if you want to approve or decline location sharing for each app, so you’re always in control. The feature is in line with Apple’s App Tracking Transparency privacy controls introduced in iOS 14.5.
Google is also adding a new “Data deletion” area within an app’s Google Play Data safety section, making it easier to request your account or other data be deleted.
Another cool privacy feature is the ability to more easily delete search history in Maps. Currently, you can delete Maps search history from Web & App Activity. To make this process more seamless, Google is rolling out the ability to delete recent searches directly from Maps.
Other Google updates
Google has also updated its API to help keep kids safer online. Google says the new move seeing the inclusion of potential CSAM in video content “is an important step forward for the child safety ecosystem.”
Meanwhile, Google has expanded spam protections in Google Drive by introducing a new view that makes it easier to separate and review your files, decide what you might view as spam, and stay safe from potential unwanted or abusive content. “Drive will also automatically classify content into spam view just like Gmail does today, protecting you from seeing dangerous or unwanted files,” Google wrote in a blog.
At the same time, dark web scans for Gmail addresses will be expanded into new markets: Previously only available to Google One subscribers in the U.S., Google is expanding access to its dark web report over the next few weeks. “Anyone with a Gmail account in the U.S. will be able to run scans to see if your Gmail address appears on the dark web and receive guidance on what actions to take to protect yourself,” Google said, adding that the firm will soon be expanding access to its dark web report to “select international markets.”
