What do Google’s Gemini privacy changes actually mean?

A Google e-mail on the confidentiality of Gemini causes agitation. The alarm came from a change in which the chatbot can access when your history is disabled. However, the implications of the update are much less sensational than the fearing initially.

Here is the heart of e-mail This triggered the hubbub in the sleeping summer press. “Gemini will soon be able to help you use the phone, messages, WhatsApp and public services on your phone, That your gemini application activity is activated or deactivated. “(The accent is ours.) The email also noted that the change begins to deploy automatically on July 7. So, this daring part seems bad enough, right? Gemini stands out through our texts, no matter what we say ??!

In this case, change is not more worrying than, well, anything else AI companies do with your data. Before this update, the activity setting for Gemini applications had be in progress to use these extensions. If you wanted to let Gemini manage tasks like making calls or send SMS, you must record your conversations. Otherwise, you cannot use telephone, messages, WhatsApp or Gemini utility extensions.

In other words, you had To store your conversations on Google servers to get the full power of Gemini. (Google still stores them for 72 hours even when it is deactivated. But this compulsory period was in place Since Gemini was always called Bard.) It also meant that your interactions could be used to train Google AI models.

What is going on now seems to be better for privacy. Now you can leave the chatbot history everything and use these features. You still don’t have to use extensions. If you do, Google will not lead them or store them for more than three days if your application activity is disabled.

The update is probably a case of Google opening the way to Gemini replace Google Assistant on Android. (This happens later this year.) These are the types of tasks that a default phone assistant will have to manage. Gemini is already the In fact assistant on the Pixel handsets.

In a statement sent to Engadget, Google helped to clarify the confusion. “This update is good for users: they can now use gemini to complete Daily Tasks on their mobile devices like messages, initiate phone calls, and set Timers While Gemini Apps Activity is turned off. With Gemini Apps Activity Turned, their gemini cats are not Used to improve Our ai Models. https://gemini.google.com/apps. “”

So it seems to be a storm in a cup of tea among a technological press eager to cover something interesting during the slow season. But what do you know? I’m cool with that. It is good to be concerned with the confidentiality of AI. You Better to be if you use these services. If some of our competitors jumped the weapon by declaring this emergency when it was not, well … it is much better than raising these things.