Android Privacy Settings You Need to Change Right Now
28 Jun 2026 · 4 min read · Comments
Android gives you more privacy control than any iPhone — but almost none of it is turned on by default. Here's a ten-minute audit that closes the biggest gaps.
Check the Privacy Dashboard First
On Android 12 and above, go to Settings → Privacy → Privacy Dashboard. This shows you every app that accessed your microphone, camera, or location in the last 24 hours — including ones you didn't know were active. Start here. Anything surprising gets its permissions revoked in the next step.
Delete Your Advertising ID
Go to Settings → Privacy → Ads → Delete advertising ID. Every Android device has a unique ID that advertisers use to build a profile of you across apps. Deleting it replaces it with a zeroed-out string that can't be used for tracking. On Android 12 and above this option is available directly. On older versions, look for Opt out of Ads Personalisation instead.
Audit App Permissions
Go to Settings → Privacy → Permission Manager. Check these categories first:
Microphone: most apps have no legitimate reason to access this
Camera: same rule applies
Location: change any Allow all the time to Only while using unless it's a navigation app
Nearby devices: shopping and social apps often use Bluetooth to track your location in stores
Turn Off Google Activity Tracking
Go to myaccount.google.com/data-and-privacy on your phone's browser. Under History settings, turn off Web & App Activity, Location History, and YouTube History. These feed Google's ad-targeting system and are all on by default. Turning them off doesn't break anything — it just stops Google recording every search, map lookup, and video you watch.
Switch Your Default Browser
Chrome sends your browsing data to Google even in Incognito mode (this was confirmed in a 2020 class action settlement). Your browser is one of the highest-value data collection points on your device. Switching takes about 30 seconds.
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These five changes take under ten minutes and cover the most invasive collection points on any Android device. The advertising ID deletion alone removes the thread that ties your in-app activity together into a single profile.
Does Android track my location even when I’m not using Google Maps?+
Yes. If Location History is enabled in your Google account, Google records your location in the background even when Maps is closed — using cell towers, Wi-Fi networks, and GPS. Turning off Location History in myaccount.google.com/data-and-privacy stops this. Android’s Privacy Dashboard (Settings → Privacy) also shows which apps have accessed location recently.
What is an Advertising ID and why should I delete it?+
The Advertising ID (also called GAID — Google Advertising ID) is a unique string assigned to your device that advertisers use to track your behaviour across apps and build a profile of your interests. Deleting it (Settings → Privacy → Ads → Delete advertising ID) replaces it with zeros, breaking the link between your activity and the profile advertisers have built.
Is Google spying on me through my Android phone?+
Google collects extensive data through Android — including location, app usage, search history, and device identifiers — and uses it primarily for ad targeting. This is described in their privacy policy. The settings in this article significantly reduce what’s collected, though some data collection is built into the OS and cannot be fully disabled without replacing Android with an alternative like GrapheneOS.
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