Google has announced that Google Maps Timeline (formerly known as Location History) data will be stored locally on users’ devices instead of their Google account (in the Cloud) from December 1, 2024. Timeline helps users track routes, trips, and places they have been to over time if Location History and Web & App Activity settings are enabled.
The change, first announced in December 2023, is understood to be a move to help with user privacy and control of their data, e.g. following allegations that Google misled consumers and illegally tracked their movements despite turning off Location History, and to reduce the risk of unauthorised access and data breaches.
Also, the move may help Google to comply with increasing data protection regulations. Google says, however, that since the data shown on a user’s Timeline comes directly from their device, Timeline won’t be available on Maps on the user’s computer after their data is moved to their phone but there is the option for users to back up Timeline data to the cloud with end-to-end encryption.