Gmail Email Privacy Concerns

The cluster discusses Google's scanning and analysis of Gmail emails for advertising and other purposes, privacy implications for both Gmail users and non-users emailing them, and debates over Google's policies and promises not to use email content for ads.

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e.g IT NYT AI HN mako.cc moderncrypto.org HR google.com theguardian.com gmail google email emails mail ads privacy metadata scan sender

Sample Comments

gress Aug 22, 2014 View on HN

Gmail users permit google to analyze their email for their own purposes.

netizen-9748 Jan 18, 2021 View on HN

Using gmail means Google still gets to read your emails and metadata

berntb Mar 3, 2010 View on HN

Yes, Google analyze the email for ad purposes. I thought we were talking about much worse behaviors (e.g. looking for business insider information or things usable for blackmail).

propogandist Apr 11, 2018 View on HN

by using Gmail, you are allowing Google to scrape what might otherwise be private messages

yen223 Mar 19, 2014 View on HN

This negates the privacy benefits of not using gmail, no?

icebraining May 26, 2018 View on HN

Gmail can't use that data for ads unless they ask for consent separately (which the user can refuse).

Crontab May 27, 2017 View on HN

Isn't Google doing the same thing to people who email Gmail users?

pmontra Jul 24, 2018 View on HN

About half of the people I exchange email with are @gmail.com It means that Google reads and possibly sell half of my email conversations even if I don't use Google as email provider. The same probably happens to you. Our choice is limited to not to send email to people with some addresses. Tough luck.

bengale Sep 23, 2021 View on HN

Isn’t this largely the point of gmail? It’s a data collection tool isn’t it?

MaxBarraclough Jul 24, 2020 View on HN

Google promise not to scan your Gmail emails for ad purposes.https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21918595 , https://support.google.com/mail/answer/6603