Google Maps announced today that it is rolling out new ways to give users more control over their personal information. The navigation app can delete activity related to a specific location and make it easier to access location controls directly from a blue dot in the app.
The company says users will soon be able to see their recent activity related to specific places and easily delete their searches, navigations, visits and shares with just a few taps. Let's say you go to a bakery and use the app to navigate there. Soon, you'll be able to view recent activity related to this bakery so you can delete them all.
As for the blue dot that shows your location on Google Maps, you'll soon be able to use it to access location controls. After clicking the blue dot, you can see whether your Location History or Timeline settings are turned on, and whether you allow Maps to access your device's location.
Google says the ability to remove location-related activity from Maps and new blue dot controls will be rolling out to Android and iOS in the coming weeks. If you choose to turn on location history, your time will soon be saved on your device.
"Just like before, you can delete all or part of your information at any time, or disable the setting entirely," Google Maps product director Mario McGrid wrote in a blog post. "If you're getting a new phone or are worried about losing your current phone, you can always choose to back up your data to the cloud so it won't be lost. We automatically encrypt your backup data so no one can read it, including Google."
Additionally, automatic deletion controls will now default to 3 months when you open Location History for the first time. Previously, this option was set to 18 months by default.
Google says the changes will gradually roll out to Android and iOS over the next year. Users will be notified when their account is updated.