In response to the European Union Digital Services Act, Effective March 6, Google is rolling out a new policy that will allow European users to choose the data shared on services like YouTube, Maps, etc.
It means that You can choose which Google services have access to your data and prevent your data from being shared with all, some, or no services.
The services included are the most popular:
- Seek
- Youtube
- Advertising Services
- Google Play
- chrome
- Google Shopping
- Google Maps
Google clarifies that data will continue to be shared in certain situations, such as when completing transactions, to comply with legal obligations, or to prevent fraud.
How is logic, Google doesn't want people to stop sharing their data. They mention that sharing data between services makes your content and ads more personal. Also note that if you disconnect the services, you may experience loss of functionality.
For example, if you turn off Search, YouTube, and Chrome, your search recommendations and Discover feed won't be as tailored to your preferences. If you turn off Search and Maps, your reservations made through Search will not appear in Maps.
The Digital Services Act also prevents Google from favoring its services in search results to promote competition.