Google's privacy policy now lets connected Gmail and Photos data shape ads
Google quietly changed its privacy policy on Oct. 16 so that Gmail, Drive and Photos data can inform personalized ads if users connect those apps to Search or Gemini through Personal Intelligence. Google says the feature is opt-in and ads won't be based directly on inboxes or photo libraries.
AI-assisted · US Brief desk · Sources listed below
What happened
Google updated its privacy policy on Oct. 16 in a way that lets data from Gmail, Drive and Google Photos inform personalized ads, but only for people who have connected those apps to other Google services such as Search's AI Mode or Gemini through a feature called Personal Intelligence, The Verge and Ars Technica reported Friday. Android Authority first spotted the change.
Why it matters
Gmail, Drive and Photos hold some of the most personal data people store online, and for years Google promised that content stayed out of ad personalization. The new wording means anyone who has turned on Personal Intelligence may see ads in AI search shaped partly by that data.
More context
The document, before and after: The old policy said flatly, "We don't show you personalized ads based on your content from Drive, Gmail, or Photos." The new version adds an exception: "unless you choose to make data from these services available to other Google services that support personalized ads." Another passage now reads: "For example, Search may process some of the data that you allow Search to access to personalize content, including ads."
Google's position: "Connecting your apps is entirely opt-in," Google said in a statement to Ars Technica. "Ads will not be based directly on your Gmail inbox or Photos library, and as always, sensitive information will not be used to tailor ads." A Google spokesperson told Ars the wording is a clarification, not a change in how it handles data with advertising partners, and that it is not scanning whole inboxes to build ad profiles or giving the data to third parties.
The critics' point: Ars Technica's Ryan Whitwam wrote that the wording "appears to dismantle" Google's long-standing firewall, because summaries drawn from a connected inbox can shape AI Mode answers, and AI search can show sponsored content. He also wrote that Google uses prompts and pop-ups that may lead people to turn on Personal Intelligence without fully understanding the trade-off.
Weak spot (both sides): Google's "opt-in" defense is accurate on paper, but it does not address how clearly the ad trade-off is explained when people switch the feature on. Critics, for their part, have not shown Google scanning whole inboxes for ad profiles; the policy covers data people share with AI search, not wholesale use of Gmail content.
How to opt out: Disconnect apps in Gemini's Personal Intelligence settings, or go to Google Account > Data & privacy > Personalization settings > Manage Personalized Recommendations in Search Services > Connected Content Apps and switch off Workspace and Google Photos, according to Ars Technica. Personalized ads can also be turned off in My Ad Center.
What's still unknown: How many people have Personal Intelligence turned on, whether Google will show the ad trade-off when people enable it, and whether regulators in the U.S. or Europe will question the change.
3 listed sources
References listed by US Brief; a source count is not a verification score.
Editorial sourcing notes
Sourcing: Google's privacy policy (current version) and statements Google gave to Ars Technica and The Verge, Oct. 23, 2026. Android Authority first spotted the change. Settings paths are as described by those outlets and may differ by device. Photo is a 2022 file image of a Google sign in Mountain View.
Like US Brief? You can support it with a tip.