Now Google says it might use your Gmail and Google Photos data to target ads

Google previously promised not to use Gmail, Google Drive, or Google Photos content for personalized ads. The updated policy adds an exception to that promise. It applies when users choose to make data from those services available to other Google services that support personalized ads.

The change connects AI personalization with advertising. Someone who links Gmail, Drive, or Photos to Search tools or AI Mode through Personal Intelligence may allow those tools to use relevant content for better answers. That same content can now help personalize ads, depending on the user’s settings.

The change does not give advertisers direct access to private files, messages, or photos. Google also says it will not target ads using sensitive categories such as race, sexual orientation, religion, or health. Users can disconnect individual apps or disable Personalized Recommendations.

Google’s Personal Intelligence feature allows certain services, including Search or Gemini Apps, to access data from other Google services. The connected services can include Google Photos and Workspace apps such as Gmail and Drive. The goal is a more personalized experience.

For example, a user can connect these services to AI Mode or other Search tools. Those tools can then know more about the user when providing responses or recommendations. The feature is optional, and users choose which services can be connected.

That choice now has an advertising consequence. Data shared for better AI recommendations may also support personalized ads, depending on the accessing service’s policies and settings. Users who do not want that connection can disconnect apps from Search’s Personal Intelligence features or disable Personalized Recommendations entirely.

The policy can involve information from several major Google services, not just one account area. A user may allow access to Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. The article does not say that every piece of information is automatically used, but it identifies content from these services as potentially available.

The information can be connected to Search’s Personal Intelligence features, AI Mode, or other Search tools. Google also names Gemini Apps as a service that may access data from other Google services. These tools use permitted content to provide more personalized responses or recommendations.

The amount involved depends on the user’s choices and settings. Someone connecting all three services could make content from Gmail, Drive, and Photos available to the accessing tools. Someone connecting none of them would not make that content available through Personal Intelligence.

Allowing Search or another Google service to use personal content can change the ads a user sees. Google says personalized ads may be based on interests, activity, or personalized content from Google services. That means information used to improve an AI response can also help shape advertising.

Google gives a specific example. If someone searches for “mountain bikes” in Search, they may later see sports-equipment ads on YouTube. Under the updated policy, connected content from services such as Gmail, Drive, or Photos may also contribute to personalization, depending on settings.

The result is not that advertisers receive the underlying private content. Instead, Google uses permitted information within its services to personalize what appears to the user. The user can disconnect apps from Personal Intelligence or disable Personalized Recommendations to prevent this type of use.

Google says advertisers do not receive access to information from a user’s Drive, Gmail, or Google Photos. They also do not receive personally identifying details such as the user’s name or email address. This keeps the underlying private content away from advertisers.

Google also sets limits on sensitive ad targeting. It says ads will not be shown based on categories including race, sexual orientation, religion, or health. These restrictions apply even as Google uses permitted interests, activity, or personalized content to make ads more relevant.

The policy therefore separates ad personalization from direct data sharing with advertisers. Google may use information within its services to decide which ads a person sees, while advertisers receive neither the private messages, files, and photos nor the listed identifying details. The article does not describe additional sensitive categories beyond those named.

Users have two main ways to avoid using personal service data for targeted ads. They can choose which apps to disconnect from Search’s Personal Intelligence features. This allows them to remove particular services, such as Gmail, Drive, or Photos, rather than changing everything.

The other option is broader. Users can disable Personalized Recommendations entirely through the Search Services Personalization settings page. That prevents the recommendation feature from using the connection described in the article, including the route that can affect personalized advertising.

These choices matter because the updated policy links shared data with ad personalization. Disconnecting selected apps limits which content can be available to Search and related tools. Turning off Personalized Recommendations takes a more complete approach. The article does not describe any other controls, so users should rely on these stated settings to manage the connection.

Targeted advertising here works through Google’s own personalization systems. When a user permits access to relevant data, Google can process interests, activity, or personalized content to decide which ads may fit that person. The source material stays within Google’s services rather than being handed directly to advertisers.

The article’s example is a search for “mountain bikes.” Google may use that activity to show sports-equipment ads on YouTube. Similarly, content shared from Gmail, Drive, or Photos may contribute to personalized ads when the user has connected those services through Personal Intelligence.

Advertisers do not receive the connected service information or identifying details such as a name or email address. Google also says it excludes sensitive categories including race, sexual orientation, religion, and health. Users can stop the connection by disconnecting apps or disabling Personalized Recommendations.