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5 min read
Quick Reality Check
Google just turned on a new default that feeds your Lens photos, voice searches, and Translate audio into its AI training. It is already on for most accounts, and most people didn’t know about it
What happened:
Google emailed account holders about a new setting called Search Services History. What it does is save every photo you search with Google Lens, every voice search you do, every recording from its real-time Search Live tool, and every phrase you speak into Translate, and it uses that material to improve Google’s services and AI models.
The important part is that the setting is on by default. That means if you use Lens to identify something, do a voice search, or speak into Translate, Google may save that media unless you turn off the setting.
Why it matters:
When Google feeds your Lens photos, voice searches, and Translate audio into AI training, they're not just using random data. They're using your specific content, the visual moments you captured, the things you said, and the languages you communicate in. That's intimate material.
And removing your name or account number doesn’t guarantee the content can’t be traced back to you. A photo of your home, family, or workspace carries identifying markers that filters can’t catch. Once that data is baked into an AI model, you can’t ask for it back.
Think of it like this: you’re training Google’s AI for free. Every photo, voice search, and translation makes their model better. That work has massive commercial value. You get nothing, and you lose control over how that content could be used, not just by Google, but by anyone who later accesses the model.
Read more here
60-Second Protection Fix
Here is what you can do to protect yourself:
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Go to https://myactivity.google.com/search-services/settings on your phone or computer.
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Sign in to your Google account if needed.
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Turn off the Save Media toggle.
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This hasn't been rolled out for everyone yet, so if you can't see it, be sure to save this post and set a reminder on your calendar to come back in a few weeks to check again.
What You Missed This Week
I interviewed people in the middle of a puppy playpen at the @zscalerinc conference 🐶🐶
Managing Al is exactly like this😂 Chaotic, exciting, and full of surprises you didn’t plan for. Watch this fun interview here
How to monitor and delete your data off Google search results:
Find out more here
Last month, hackers broke into DentaQuest - the company that manages dental benefits for 35 million Americans on Medicaid and Medicare.
Here’s what makes this worse than a normal breach!
Let’s keep building together!
Stay protected,
Cybersecurity Girl
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