Gmail users advised to 'turn off' two features NOW amid email privacy concerns

[240B]

Gmail users advised to 'turn off' two features NOW amid email privacy concerns

Daily Mail
By CHRIS MELORE
6 January 2026

Google users have been warned that they've been secretly opted in to a feature that allows the tech giant to access all their private emails.

According to electronics design engineer Dave Jones of Australia, all Gmail users have had their accounts automatically selected to allow Google to scan their messages and attachments to help train its AI models like Gemini.

This means your personal or work emails could be read and used without you explicitly agreeing to it first, after the feature was quietly activated in October 2025.

The issue has already spurred a class-action lawsuit to be filed against Google, claiming the company activated this hidden setting in Gmail to 'secretly' exploit users' email history.

Jones said in a post on X: 'You have to manually turn off Smart Features in the Settings menu in TWO locations.'

For those using Gmail through a desktop or laptop, users would have to open the 'See all settings' tab and choose to turn off the option 'Turn on smart features in Gmail, Chat, and Meet' in the section labeled as Smart features.

Then, Gmail users will have to open the 'Manage Workspace smart feature settings' located right below the Smart features and opt out of the permissions there before saving their choices.

However, when the Daily Mail attempted to deactivate the hidden Google opt-ins, it was discovered that opting out of the data sharing unfiltered all of your emails, removing the 'promotions,' 'social,' and 'updates' tabs from your inbox.

(more)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-15436389/Gmail-turn-two-features-email-privacy.html

[Fishrrman]

Gmail = google.
And... anything associated with google... endeavours to gather as much information about you, as it can get away with...

I try to avoid anything google now, searches, etc.

I use YouTube because there's nothing to equal it out there... but when I do, I DO NOT "log into" the site, and use a private browser window when doing so.

[mountaineer]

Thanks for the heads-up. I was unaware of this feature.

[Sighlass]

Thank You, I pride myself in keeping Google trimmed down as best I can, but I have to have an account (that I don't use except to log-in to Google controlled websites on rare occasions, mainly Youtube to reply to a video)... As the article stated, the spy settings had been turned on by default. I did noticed I had received several Phishing emails hoping to lure me in to reply with sensitive info so they could steal my account or perhaps more (didn't explore, just added to spam control and deleted). @240B 

As always Google begs me to add info to my account to make it more secure, wanting personal information, I always bypass them and they plead with me to not do so.