The average smartphone can do a lot of things and that includes making the most of a location tracker that could even put the AirTag to shame. Therefore, this happens to be one of the main reasons why the company made it clear recently how it was planning to switch off location history through a default means.
Moreover, it was set forward in 2022 how the Android maker would also include some greater level of protection so that users that do make use of it can benefit further. This entails forgetting about visits to some very sensitive destinations that are medically themed. And now, we’re seeing the tech giant go back to that same discussion and provide more input on this system and its usual operations.
Last year in July, the search engine giant mentioned how it was going to share this Location History and how it would start to detect all the places that some users deemed to be controversial and sensitive. Others looked at it as something private and wished to delete all traces of such sensitive material from their devices so no one else would know.
The list was not too exhaustive and it did include the likes of medical buildings including counseling centers, abortion centers, fertility clinics, shelters to house victims of domestic abuse, and clinics for weight loss. Other places included rehabilitation centers and clinics for cosmetic surgery procedures as well.
The tech giant failed to include any more new examples for that list but it now is making it very clear how such a functionality does not go about extending to every single medical destination out there.
It’s more like saying hello to general-purpose facilities including hospitals or GP’s clinics that would continue to pop up in the Location History.
In the future, the tech giant does plan on making some more leading changes to this system. And the company also vowed to crack down against any loopholes that might seem like huge risks of sensitive material lasting much longer than it could.
No users would be able to provide a confirmation of visits to such places on the list, it is added through a manual means. But for now, we’re yet to hear more news on this front and what the expected timeframe for such restrictions could be.
As one can imagine, location history is a very private thing and while the debate is never ending regarding how much data should be exposed and how much should be censored, one thing is for sure. Google is really nice enough to take out the time necessary to consider such private matters as a concern.
The goal seems to be striking a balance between both reducing harm and the actual functionality taking place.
Read next: Google Takes Responsibility with AI, Panics at Competitors
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World
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