Google has begun rolling out a significant restructuring of its privacy controls, decoupling search history and personalization into separate settings for both Search services and Google Play. The change, which is being communicated to users via email and will appear in Google Accounts in the coming days, aims to provide more granular control over what data is saved and how it is used to tailor user experiences.
The new controls replace the long-standing reliance on a single “Web & App Activity” toggle, which previously governed both the saving of user activity and the use of that data for personalization across a wide swath of Google services. Under the new framework, users will encounter distinct settings for “Search Services History” and “Personalized Recommendations,” as well as separate “Play History” and “Personalization in Play” options. This separation is designed to resolve a common privacy concern: users who want their search history saved for convenience but do not want Google to use that history to shape their recommendations can now make that choice explicitly.
Search Services History Controls Save Media and Activity
The new Search Services History setting will govern the saving of activity from a broad range of Google services, including Search, Maps, Shopping, Hotels, Flights, Translate, and News. When enabled, Google will save information such as search queries, Maps activity, shopping searches, flight and hotel inquiries, Translate usage, and News interactions to the user’s Google Account. A key component of this new setting is the “Save Media” sub-setting, which automatically saves images, files, audio, and video from interactions with Search services. This includes visual searches conducted with Google Lens and audio from voice-based queries. Google states that this media is retained to support updated interactive experiences, such as revisiting past Lens searches or continuing a Search Live conversation about a song. However, the company also notes that this saved media, much like the broader Search Services History, is used to develop and improve Google services, technologies, and safety systems, which can include training generative AI models. Users who currently have Web & App Activity enabled will see both Search Services History and the Save Media sub-setting turned on automatically after the transition. Google confirms that this media-saving option can be turned off at any time, and individual media items can be deleted from the history.
Personalized Recommendations Becomes a Separate Toggle
The introduction of a standalone Personalized Recommendations setting is perhaps the most consequential change for user autonomy. Previously, a single Web & App Activity switch determined both whether activity was saved and whether that saved activity was used for personalization. The new framework clarifies the distinction: Search Services History controls whether activity is saved to the account, while Personalized Recommendations controls whether Google can use that saved data to tailor search results, ads, and other content for the user. This separation is particularly valuable for users who want a record of their searches for personal review but prefer a non-personalized, consistent experience across Google services. Google has stated that after the transition, changes made to Search Services History settings will not affect Personalized Recommendations settings, and vice versa.
Changes Also Apply to Google Play
In parallel with the Search services updates, Google is introducing similar controls for its Play Store. Users will find new “Play History” and “Personalization in Play” settings within their Google Account. These settings will appear for all users, even those who have never used Google Play services. The auto-delete preferences previously configured for Web & App Activity, such as a 3-month or 18-month deletion window, will automatically apply to the new Search Services History and Play History settings. Users can, of course, adjust these periods or manually delete their history at any time.
What This Means for Your Privacy and Next Steps
This restructuring represents a net positive for user control over data within the Google ecosystem. By splitting a broad, binary setting into targeted controls, Google is enabling more nuanced privacy choices. For example, a user can now choose to save their search history for the purpose of revisiting past queries while simultaneously disabling personalization to prevent their data from influencing search rankings or ad targeting. This granularity was not previously available. However, the automatic activation of both Search Services History and the Save Media sub-setting for existing Web & App Activity users is a detail that warrants immediate attention. Users who are comfortable with the old Web & App Activity system may not be aware that their interactions with Lens or voice search are now being saved in a new, more media-heavy format designed to train AI models. The most critical action for users is to audit these new settings as soon as they appear in their Google Account over the next few days. Review what is being saved under Search Services History, pay close attention to the Save Media sub-setting, and decide independently whether to enable or disable the new Personalized Recommendations toggle. As a general principle of digital security, it is advisable to limit data collection to only what is necessary for the services you actively use and to disable features that store media or other interactions for purposes like AI model training unless you are fully comfortable with the scope of that use.
