Google May Use Your Gmail and Photos for Targeted Ads

Google has quietly changed its privacy policy, and it could affect how your personal data is used. If you use Google's AI features—like AI Mode in Search or Gemini—and allow them to access your Gmail, Drive, or Google Photos, Google may now use that information to show you targeted ads. This is a shift from its previous promise not to use those services for ad personalization.

The change, which took effect on October 16th, adds a small but important exception: Google won't use your data for ads "unless you choose to make data from these services available to other Google services that support personalized ads." In other words, by opting into AI features that pull from your personal content, you're also opting into ad targeting based on that content.

Google says advertisers never see your actual emails, photos, or files, and it won't target ads based on sensitive categories like race, religion, or health. But the policy still means that what you write in Gmail or store in Photos could influence the ads you see across Google's platforms, including YouTube and Search.

If you're uncomfortable with this, you can take action. You can disconnect specific apps from Search's Personal Intelligence features or turn off Personalized Recommendations entirely in your Google account settings. It's a good reminder to review your privacy settings regularly—especially as AI features become more integrated into the services we use every day.