The Android team has introduced a new option to Google Maps that promises greater privacy for users, imitating the classic incognito mode of browsers, with the same pros and cons.
Privacy on the internet is one of the great challenges, where although work has begun, the road will be long and tortuous since the trail we leave in each navigation leaves too many breadcrumbs.
In Google, they know, you just have to see the actions that have been introduced over the years, so the arrival of incognito mode to Google Maps has not been a surprise, but only a matter of time.
The private option in the Android geolocation tool prevents Google Maps from performing the following tasks:
- Save your browsing or search history to your account or send notifications
- Update your location history or shared location, if any
- Use your activity to customize Maps
This is an advance, especially for the user experience. However, it still leaves the fact that the incognito does not affect how Internet providers, voice search, other apps, and several Google services use and save your activity.
How to Activate Incognito Mode for Google Maps
As for how to activate it, this is very simple:
- Open Google Maps.
- Click on the profile photo in the upper right corner.
- Finally, click on Activate Incognito mode (very similar to how it is done in Chrome).
Of course, this mode also disables functions such as:
- Daily travel.
- Location history.
- Location sharing.
- Autocomplete suggestions.
- Offline maps.
- Your places.
- Integration.
- Google assistant microphone in navigation, among other options.
As you well know, incognito modes are something that we usually recommend to preserve our privacy on the network ( despite its failures ). This time, we are not going to make an exception, despite the disadvantages of having it active.
Deciding what information we share with the network and which we reserve for ourselves is the smartest way to interact with the internet.
