The Green Look Back. Android’s On-Device Location History
Brief
We’re at now, now.
Back in December of 2023 Google announced a change to Android’s Location History feature that got quite a bit of attention. Prior to the announcement, users could view their location history via the Google Maps application and any web browser where they were signed in. That meant the data was stored by and likely accessible to Google, which made anyone who was privacy-minded nervous.
Google’s December announcement changed all of that. According to the announcement Location History was getting a new name in the Google Maps UI, “Timeline,” the data it contained would be stored locally on the device instead of their servers, and the default retention time of location data was shortened from 18 months to 3.
The announcement went on to say these changes were being done in the name of privacy and control, and they would happen gradually in 2024.