Google automatically records your voice when you use its services and applications. But there is a hidden option in settings to disable the feature.
You know it well, Google is a real monster when it comes to collecting its users’ personal data. It records all their activities on the web and in its applications, as well as verbal interactions with Search, Assistant and Maps, which it uses “to develop and improve its audio recognition technologies”. The problem is that the company reuses all this data by cross-referencing it. Even more intrusive, if you say “OK Google” Or “Hey Google”, your smartphone will listen to the command. So before you say this trigger phrase, it listens for key words, even if it doesn’t record everything you say.
The company says it records your voice activity to help you get better results through its products, by learning what a voice sounds like, how you pronounce words and phrases, and improving voice recognition through Google products. The concern is that Google’s business model, based on advertising, raises serious suspicions about the use of data for marketing analysis and commercial targeting of individuals. Additionally, if cybercriminals gain access to your account or connected devices, they could listen to phone recordings and steal information from data stored by Google.
Fortunately, there is a hidden option within your Google account settings that we invite you to deactivate. To do this, go to your account settings, via “Manage your Google account”, and, in the horizontal bar, select “Data and privacy”. Scroll down to “History Settings” and select the “Web & App Activity” section, where you’ll see there is a blue checkmark. Click on it. Then scroll down and you should notice that there is a “Voice and Audio Activity” section that has a blue checkmark. Uncheck it to prevent Google from listening.
Doing this will prevent Google from storing audio recordings of voice features from its services on your account. “When this voice and audio activity setting is turned off, recordings of voice interactions with Google Search, Assistant, and Maps are not saved to your Google account on Google servers, even if you are signed in“, indicates the Mountain View company. We advise you to also delete previous recordings that Google has kept.