Google Opens Gmail and Photos Data to Ads Through Its AI Features
A quiet privacy policy edit lets Google target ads using Gmail, Drive and Photos content linked to AI Mode. Here is what it means under India's DPDP Act.
The News
Google has quietly rewritten a key line in its privacy policy, opening the door to ads shaped by what sits in a user's Gmail, Drive and Google Photos, provided that user has linked those services to its AI tools. The change, first flagged by Android Authority, took effect on 16 October.
Until now, the policy carried a flat promise that content from Drive, Gmail and Photos would not be used for personalised advertising. The revised text keeps that promise but now carves out cases where users share that data with other Google services "that support personalized ads."
In practice, the exception covers anyone who has switched on Personal Intelligence, the feature that lets AI Mode and other Search tools draw on a person's emails, files and photos to give more tailored answers. The updated policy names Search and Gemini Apps as examples of services that may access this data, and states that Search may use some of it to personalise content, "including ads."
Google says advertisers will not receive the underlying content or identifying details, and that sensitive categories such as health and religion remain off limits for targeting.
Why It Matters
The update shows how the business model behind consumer AI assistants is settling. Features that read a person's inbox and photo library are expensive to run, and Google is signalling that the value of that richer context will flow back into its advertising engine rather than sit behind a paywall alone.
There is a clear precedent for how badly such changes can land. In January 2021, WhatsApp's update allowing more data sharing with its parent company triggered a user exodus to Signal and Telegram and, in India, regulatory action that ran for years. An exception bolted onto an existing promise tends to draw closer scrutiny than a fresh opt-in.
Indian Angle
India is the most direct test case. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 requires consent to be free, specific, informed and limited to a stated purpose, and the DPDP Rules notified by MeitY in November 2025 are being phased in over 18 months. Consent given to help an AI assistant answer questions about one's own email is, on a plain reading, a different purpose from consent to receive targeted ads. Expect privacy lawyers and the incoming Data Protection Board to examine whether a single toggle can carry both.
The Competition Commission of India has also shown it is willing to treat data sharing as a competition issue. In November 2024 it fined Meta Rs 213.14 crore over WhatsApp's 2021 policy, partly on the ground that users were pushed to accept wider data use. Google, already penalised Rs 1,337.76 crore by the CCI in 2022 over Android, operates in India with a comparable reach across Gmail, Photos and Search.
Performance marketers on Google Ads may gain sharper intent signals, while domestic AI builders such as Sarvam and Krutrim, which pitch data residency and privacy as selling points, gain a concrete talking point with enterprise buyers.
FAQ
When did the change take effect?
The revised privacy policy has applied since 16 October 2026. It affects users who have chosen to connect Gmail, Drive or Google Photos to Search features through Personal Intelligence. Users who never linked those apps fall outside the new exception.
Will advertisers see my emails or photos?
No. Google says advertisers do not receive the content of Drive, Gmail or Photos, nor personally identifying details such as a name or email address. It also says it will not serve ads based on sensitive categories such as race, religion, sexual orientation or health.
How can Indian users opt out?
Open the Search Services Personalization settings page in your Google account. From there you can disconnect individual apps, such as Gmail or Photos, from Personal Intelligence, or turn off Personalized Recommendations entirely. Doing so stops that content from feeding into personalised ads, though it also reduces how tailored AI Mode answers will be.
Does this comply with India's data protection law?
That is untested. The DPDP Act, 2023 demands purpose-specific consent, and its rules are still being phased in. Whether one setting can legitimately cover both AI personalisation and advertising is likely to be a question for the Data Protection Board once enforcement begins in full.
This story was reported by The Verge. Read the full original coverage at The Verge.