Google Location Data Fine: What Your Account Can Still Store After Timeline Is Off
Google has been fined €403 million ($463 million) by Ireland’s Data Protection Commission over how it handled users’ location data, but the penalty is about practices from 2018 to 2020. The more useful question for users today is different: what location-linked information can still be stored in a Google account, even after Maps Timeline is turned off?
“The scope of the Inquiry concerned Google’s processing of location data in three specific features – ‘Web & App Activity’, ‘Location History’ and ‘Location Accuracy’ between the date of application of the GDPR, 25 May 2018 to 4 February 2020.”
The regulator found infringements involving lawfulness and fairness for Web & App Activity and Location History, accountability around Location Accuracy, transparency across all three features, and retention of location data in Web & App Activity and Location History. Google has six months to bring its processing into compliance with the DPC’s order.
What The Fine Covers
The DPC’s decision does not establish that Google is committing the same violations today. Its investigation was explicitly limited to the 2018–2020 period.
“Individuals could have been unaware that their location was being used to, for example, influence them with ads or to infer their interests, and could lose control over their personal data,” said Graham Doyle, Deputy Commissioner at Ireland’s Data Protection Commission.
Google said its location-data policies have since been updated and pointed to privacy controls it has introduced since the period examined by the investigation. But checking your current settings still makes sense because Google’s account architecture separates different kinds of activity.
Timeline Isn’t The Whole Story
Google Maps Timeline is the most obvious location-history control. It is off by default and must be enabled by the user. When enabled, Google says it regularly saves a device’s precise location to Timeline, allowing users to review places, routes and trips.
“If you have other settings like Search Services History or Web & App Activity turned on, and you pause Timeline or delete location data from Timeline, you may still have location data saved in your Google Account as part of your use of other Google sites, apps, and services.”
Google’s own account documentation says that if other settings such as Web & App Activity are enabled, location data may still be saved through other Google sites, apps and services after Timeline is paused or its location data is deleted. That can include information about the general area associated with a device or IP address, and in some circumstances more precise location information.
Three Places To Check
If you want to see what your account is retaining, check these separately:
| Setting | What It Stores | How to Manage / Delete |
|---|---|---|
| Google Maps Timeline | Visited places, routes, and trips (now saved locally on your phone by default). | Open Google Maps → Your Timeline to review, delete, or turn off. |
| Web & App Activity | Searches, Assistant queries, app usage, and IP-derived general location. | Go to myactivity.google.com → Web & App Activity to pause or set auto-delete. |
| Device Location Accuracy | High-precision position data using nearby Wi-Fi, cell towers, and sensors. | On Android: Settings → Location → Location Services → Location Accuracy. |
My Activity: Go to Google Account → Data & privacy → My Activity. Google describes this as the central place for viewing activity such as searches, websites and videos, with associated data that can include location depending on the products and settings involved.
Timeline: In Google Maps, open Your Timeline to review places and routes. Google says Timeline is opt-in and can be deleted separately.
Web & App Activity: “Activity may also include info about your location from your device’s general area and IP address.” Google says Web & App Activity can save activity from Google services and may include location information from a device’s general area and IP address.
The $463 million fine therefore should not be read as proof that Google’s current location controls violate the same rules. It does show why the distinction between different types of account activity matters.
Turning off Maps Timeline is not the same thing as clearing all location-linked activity from a Google account. A proper privacy check means reviewing Timeline, Web & App Activity and My Activity separately, then deleting or pausing anything you no longer want stored.
