Google's Estimated Photo Locations Alerts Android, iOS Users

Inno Flores, Tech Times 20 February 2023, 12:02 am

Google is warning Android and iOS users regarding a feature from the Google Photos application. The feature looks at the backgrounds of images and videos and tries to figure out where it was taken through visible landmarks and surroundings.

(Photo : Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 9: A guest takes pictures of the new Google Pixel 3 smartphone during a Google product release event, October 9, 2018 in New York City. The phones will go on sale on October 18 for a base starting retail price of $799 for the Pixel 3 and $899 for the Pixel 3 XL. Google also released a new tablet called the Pixel Slate and the Google Home Hub.

Estimated Photo Locations

According to a report from The Sun, the Google Photos app will continue to guess using the estimated photo locations feature instead. This will happen on all smartphones, whether on iPhone or Android.

While this feature is safe to use, Google still warned its users that some people are uncomfortable with location tracking, specifically for photos taken from personal locations like home or work.

Google clarified on a pop-up alert that they had already stopped using Location History for this feature as a default. But once the "Estimate missing locations" setting is on, Google will continue to estimate it using other sources.

Users will be asked whether they want to keep any existing estimated locations or want to remove them. Once users decide to delete them, Google will warn them by saying that this result will cause a permanent loss of locations. But choosing "Keep" means that users can still use the feature to organize and find photos on the app.

Either way, Google Photos' iOS and Android users must decide before May 1st, 2023, as Google would automatically remove the estimations on or after the said date.

Toggling the Feature

To check the settings, Phone Arena reported that users will have to open the app and tap on the profile picture in the upper right corner of the screen. Tap on photo settings, then location, then location sources. From there, users will see a toggle for Estimate Missing Locations.

Users can also edit or remove the estimated location from a picture stored in the Google Photos app. Tap the three-dot overflow menu on the photo or video and edit. From there, users will see add or select and remove a location.

Removing a location will delete any location associated with a picture or video. However, the app cannot edit photos with a place added by your phone's camera. Users may edit this feature on their respective phone settings.

Also Read: Google Gboard App Gets Redesign: AOSP Keyboard No More?

Last year, Google introduced new features on the app. This includes the library tab's new layout for videos, photos, and folders. A sharing tab was also made for conversations, shared albums, and partner sharing. Your latest screenshots can now be found through a special spring cleaning shortcut.

2022 was the same year Google Photos launched the Locked Folders feature, a security feature that allows users to lock their photos and videos through a password-dependent folder. The feature was originally exclusive to Google Pixel phones.

This feature has extra protection against privacy invasion, as the locked content will remain hidden from the viewer when viewed inside the folder. This means that sensitive media will not appear on the screen using the Google Photos app.