Google finally gives Android users a privacy feature iOS has had for months

Google and privacy are not really happy bedfellows, but from time to time the company does make a nod in that direction. One example of this is the option to delete the last 15 minutes of your search history which iOS users have enjoyed access to since the middle of last year.

The feature is a handy way to cover your tracks should you forget to enable incognito mode and don't fancy the idea of trawling through your search history to manually remove anything you'd rather keep private. Now, some nine months after treating iOS users to this, Google has finally brought it to users of its own mobile operating system.

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The news was brought to light not by an announcement from Google, but after Mishaal Rahman -- former editor of XDA Developers -- was tipped off about it. While he was not immediately able to verify that the rollout was underway, it was confirmed by others who were able to access the new search history deletion option

Google later issued a statement saying:

We're currently rolling this feature out on the Google app for Android and expect it to be available to everyone using the app in the next few weeks. We’re continuing to explore ways to bring this helpful feature to other surfaces.

It is not clear why Google decided to prioritize iOS over Android, nor why it managed to miss the scheduled release to Android users last year. What matters is that it is now available, and you can access it by tapping your profile picture in the Google app and looking for the Delete last 15 minutes option under Search history.

Image credit: Denys Prykhodov / Shutterstock