Google extends ‘Incognito Mode’ in Maps to iOS users

Incognito mode is now available on Google Maps for iOS users and bulk location history deletion in Timeline will roll out on Android next month, Google announced on Monday.

Why we care

Providing users with more control over their privacy settings can instill confidence and promote trust, which can help Google retain users.

From a marketing perspective, these updates won’t have a material impact. Although some users may opt to purge location history from their Timelines or use Incognito Mode in Maps, those actions will not have a significant effect on Google’s location data collection or ad targeting capabilities.

More on the announcement

• While using Incognito Mode in Maps, the locations a user searches for or navigates to are not saved to their Google account and personalized features, such as restaurant recommendations based on Maps history, do not appear.
• With bulk delete, users can delete all or part of their Timeline by date range from their location history settings.
• Location history can also be set to automatically delete activity after three months. Data older than 18 months is automatically deleted from a user’s account on an ongoing basis.
• Incognito mode in Maps first rolled out to Android users in October.

About The Author

George Nguyen

George Nguyen is an editor for Search Engine Land, covering organic search, podcasting and e-commerce. His background is in journalism and content marketing. Prior to entering the industry, he worked as a radio personality, writer, podcast host and public school teacher.