this post was submitted on 23 Jan 2026
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Ooooorrrrrr...... You knowww........... Delete or stop using your google account and their services?
Because if what actually bothers you is the idea that Google is spying on your things with Gemini....
First: lol. lmao even.
Second: Sorry for the laugh, but that's because I believe that they don't need gemini to do that, they do it anyway regardless of your settings.
Case in point, last year google was sentenced to pay a fine because they were collecting data from their users, even though those users had tracking turned off in their settings. And I believe it wasn't the first time, but I can't be arsed to search for older examples.
An ad company that has trackers almost everywhere on the web and tracks you even if you're not using their services, that understanding and studying your behaviour is a central part of their business model; and you believe that they won't spy and track you because you asked them not to? C'mon
Degoogling your self is a process and needs to be handled carefully. Realisticly, this quite difficult if your not a fruit phone user, but there is hope for people who arn't neck deep in Apples walled garden. GraphenOS announced last year they would be expanding their range of supported devices. [Link]
Once that happens, closing the ol' google account will be much easier or atleast use a modern smart phone without having it tied to the tornent nexus.
Thanks. Yes, Google had been evil for a long time, probably before they removed "don't be evil." No, let's not be gatekeepers.
Yeah, this is one of those cases where we can't let perfection be the enemy of action. I myself I'm in the middle of degoogling as well, and it's a process that is taking a few months now (and will take some more).
But even if you use a googled android and still use some of their services, simply not defaulting to them for everything goes a long way. Use other browsers, use other search engines, use other email providers, etc.
But the point I was making was more about the privacy side of things. I don't believe that leaving those AI features on or off makes that much difference at the end of the day. Google will still spy on your content, and if they want to, they will use it for AI training regardless.
I know that their policies and whatnot might say differently, but I don't trust that they respect them.