You've been deleting your Google search history wrong
Bad news for people who try to erase their Google Chrome search history after an embarrassing search — you’re probably doing it wrong.
It turns out search data will stay in Google unless you take an extra step to completely clear it.
People typically attempt to clear their data by hitting “control”+”Y” on the keyboard or clicking the three dots in the top right corner of Chrome and selecting “history.” Users can then select to “clear browsing data.”
However, to completely get rid of the data linked to your account, there’s one more hidden step that needs to be taken.
In order to wipe your data from Google, you first have to click the profile icon in the top right corner next to the search bar.
After that, you’ll click on “Manage Your Account,” which will bring you to a screen with a bunch of tabs.
The best way to get to your browsing data is to type “My Activity” into the search bar within the page — not the one at the top of the screen — and click it when it appears. That will open up a window with all your previous searches.
From here, you can either filter based on website or date, or simply click the “delete” button to clear them all. There will be an option to delete all searches ever made or just within a certain time frame.
To completely get rid of the data linked to your account, there’s one more hidden step that needs to be taken. Google
Before everything is completely wiped, Google will inform you which products your searches are being swiped from, whether it’s just Chrome or YouTube as well.
Your browsing history will be completely erased, but Google still keeps some other data in order to help improve its services.
Before everything is completely wiped, Google will inform you which products your searches are being swiped from, whether its just Chrome or YouTube as well. Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images
“We keep some data for the life of your Google Account if it’s useful for helping us understand how users interact with our features and how we can improve our services,” Google’s privacy terms state.
“For example, after you delete a specific Google search from My Activity, we might keep information about how often you search for things, but not what you searched for. When you delete your Google Account, the information about how often you search for things is also removed.”
Source: New York Post
