Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google Messages now allows you to management who sees your profile image and title by way of the Profile discovery characteristic.
- Customers can select from three privateness settings: everybody they message, solely contacts, or nobody.
- It’s also possible to fully flip off profile discovery within the app settings.
Like it or hate it, Google Messages is right here to remain. Whereas the app could lag behind widespread texting apps, Messages has grow to be the de-facto chief for RCS messaging on Android. For ardent Google Messages customers, Google is now rolling out privateness choices for the Profile discovery characteristic, giving customers extra management over who can see their profile.
We noticed the privateness choices for Profile discovery in an APK teardown report final month, and Google is now rolling it out broadly to customers within the steady department. At app startup, customers are greeted with the “Customise how you might be seen” web page, they usually have to decide on whom to point out their title and film to: folks they message, solely their contacts, or nobody.
As you’ll have observed, there isn’t a approach to skip the display, so you’ll have to choose to proceed. Should you change your thoughts, you possibly can return to the setup display by tapping the profile image within the top-right nook and choosing your profile.
Earlier than the rollout of those privateness choices, Profile discovery may simply be toggled on and off. These privateness choices give customers extra management over who can see their knowledge, similar to title and profile image. The flexibleness of those choices will treatment a great chunk of official privateness issues that folks had about their title and profile image being seen to anybody with their quantity and even to individuals who randomly looked for numbers, as even the widest possibility restricts your particulars to folks you message.
It’s vital to notice that you simply nonetheless can not set a unique profile image or title for Google Messages. Your profile on Google Messages takes the title and film of your Google account, i.e., your Gmail profile image.
Learn how to disable Profile discovery in Google Messages
Should you’d a lot moderately not use the Profile discovery characteristic in any respect, you possibly can set the privateness choice to Nobody to proceed ahead into the Messages app after which flip off Profile discovery fully by following these steps:
- Open the Messages app.
- Faucet on the profile image on the prime proper nook.
- Go to Messages settings > Profile discovery > Flip off Profile discovery.
- Click on Flip off to show off profile discovery.
Learn how to use Google Messages and not using a Google account
Should you’d favor to make use of Google Message with out attaching a Google account, you are able to do that by following the steps under:
- Open the Messages app.
- Faucet on the profile image on the prime proper nook.
- Choose the dropdown icon for account choice.
- Choose Use with out an account.
- Make sure that Cease profile discovery for this telephone quantity (really helpful) is checked and chosen.
- Faucet on Signal out.
Observe that doing so will disable options like Magic Compose, Machine pairing, and Gemini and cease Profile discovery.
Have you ever obtained these privateness choices in Google Messages? What have you ever set it to, or did you flip off Profile discovery? Tell us within the feedback under!
