Google has clarified that information drawn from apps you connect to its Search services can help personalize advertising. The explanation matters if you've linked Gmail or Google Photos to get more personal answers: your decision can affect more than the answer itself.
An October 16 update to Google's earlier privacy statement says the subset of connected-app data used to personalize other Google experiences may also be used for ads, depending on your settings. This is a clarification added to an older page, rather than an announcement that every Gmail account has been enrolled in a new advertising feature.
Read the connection permission carefully
The Search Help explanation for connected content apps draws a specific distinction. Ads aren't based directly on your inbox or photo library. Summaries, excerpts and inferences drawn from connected content can inform personalization, including ads. Advertisers don't receive access to those apps.
Connection is optional. You can still use AI Mode and Ask Maps without linking your content. If you do connect, permission applies across Search services, including Maps and Shopping, rather than only the particular answer you wanted.
That makes the permission screen worth treating as a lasting account decision. A useful restaurant suggestion might justify sharing more context for you. It might not. Start by asking what you actually want the connection to improve; a vague promise of more helpful answers isn't much to weigh against access to personal material.
For an account check, look under Search Services Personalization, then Additional Personal Intelligence and Connected Content Apps. Settings are being updated, so the labels may differ. Disconnecting an app doesn't remove information already in Search Services History; reviewing that history is a separate step.
Review advertising preferences separately
The company also updated its answers to common advertising-privacy questions on October 16. That page points users to My Ad Center to control ad personalization. Turning personalization off doesn't eliminate advertising; you will still see ads.
Don't assume one decision answers every privacy question. Whether a connected answer is useful, whether you're comfortable with its advertising implications and whether you want to keep the resulting history are different choices. You don't need to make all of them in the moment a feature invites you to try it.
Before connecting Gmail or Photos, review the permission and your ad preferences together. If you've already connected them and want to reverse that choice, check the saved history as well as the connection.