Google updates Location History, adds new controls to Maps

Google just announcement plans to introduce new controls to its Maps app, as well as some useful features for location history. Many of these upcoming features aim to give users more control over managing location data.

Currently, Maps users who have Location History enabled on their devices have their timelines saved on Google's servers, but that's about to change. Google announced that in order to give users more control over their data, their timelines will be saved directly to their device.

The new change has all the benefits Maps users currently enjoy, including the ability to delete some or all of their information at any time or turn the setting off completely.

In addition to saving the timeline across devices, users who enable Location History for the first time will see the auto-delete control set to three months by default. Previously, this option was set at 18 months, which was a very long time without deleting what many consider to be very sensitive data.

The new changes to Location History will roll out gradually over the next year on Android and iOS. Most importantly, you will be notified when this update is available to you.

As for Maps, Google announced that you will soon be able to see all your recent activities on the app related to a certain location in one place. It will allow you to very easily delete your searches, itineraries, visits and shares. This feature will be rolled out to Android and iOS in the coming weeks.

Finally, Google is adding new blue dot controls to Maps, which will allow users to see if their location history or timeline settings are enabled and if they have given Maps access to their device's location . Just like the previous feature, this one will be deployed in the coming weeks on Android and iOS.