How does Google keep my information safe?
We build security into everything we do.
If your information is not secure, it is not private. That is why we have designed our services, such as Search, Maps, and YouTube, to keep you and your information safe and secure. From encryption and powerful spam blockers in Gmail to hundreds of Google security experts inventing new ways to protect you, advanced security is central to everything we do. Explore some of our most powerful security features.
Encryption
Keeping your information safe
Encryption is available in our most popular services, including Search, Maps, and YouTube, in many countries. Encryption with HTTPS brings a higher level of security and privacy to the services you use. It means that your information is safer when it travels between your device and Google. Gmail has supported encryption since 2008, and was the first major email service to do so.
Keeping you safe as you surf the web is important to us. That is why we consider whether a site uses encryption in our search algorithm. We hope this will encourage more sites to use encryption and make the web safer for everyone.
Chrome Safe Browsing
Keeping the Internet safe for the world’s surfers
Chrome’s Safe Browsing technology protects about half the world’s online population, warning them about websites that could contain malware, unwanted software, and phishing schemes designed to steal personal information.
To make the Internet safer for everyone, we have made our Safe Browsing technology free for other companies to use in their products, including Apple Safari and Mozilla Firefox. Every day, Safe Browsing discovers thousands of unsafe sites, many of them legitimate websites that do not even know they have been compromised. We alert these site owners and offer them free tools to quickly fix the problem.
To keep Chrome up to date as new risks are detected, Chrome delivers autoupdates regularly. That way you can count on being protected by the latest security technology.
Gmail spam protection
Delivering emails you actually want
Many malware and phishing attacks start with an email. Gmail security protects you from spam, phishing, and malware better than any other email service. The Gmail spam filter checks for viruses, studies broad email patterns, and learns from what past users have marked as spam to intercept and block suspicious or dangerous emails before they ever reach you. Do not hesitate to select "Report Spam" for any unwanted email.
Notifications
Notifying you if something does not seem right
To protect your account from bad guys, we keep an eye out for unusual activity and notify you when something does not seem right. For example, if an unknown device attempts to sign in to your account or if your account recovery information is changed, we contact you right away to confirm that this activity is yours. Notifications are sent to you via email, but you can also sign up to receive text messages if you would prefer to be notified on the go.
Security team
Fostering a culture dedicated to security
We have a strong security culture, one that attracts the best-of-the-best engineers. In fact, we employ more than 500 full-time security and privacy professionals. And they are focused on making sure your data is secure and available when you need it.
We also invite and reward other professionals in the security community to work with us on initiatives that make the entire Internet safer.
Cloud infrastructure
Maintaining a secure and reliable cloud infrastructure
Google has built one of the world’s most secure cloud infrastructures. From custom-designed data centers and servers, right down to our own undersea fiber cables that transfer data between continents — all of it is monitored 24/7 to make sure your digital information is safe and available when you need it. In fact, we distribute data across multiple data centers, so in the event of a fire or disaster, it can be automatically and seamlessly shifted to stable and secure locations. And each Google data center has on-premise security such as retina scanners and, yes, even laser beams, to prevent unauthorized access.
Ads security
Stopping fraudulent ads
Every day we disable more than a million ads for using deceptive tactics and promoting counterfeit goods, malware, and spyware, among other violations of our advertising policies. In 2014 alone, we disabled more than 520 million ads. We share our learnings, insights, and best practices with the industry to make the web safer for all.
Law enforcement requests
Responding to law enforcement data requests
Occasionally we receive requests for a user's data from law enforcement agencies. Our legal team reviews every request, and pushes back when a request is overly broad or does not follow the correct process. Google has not joined any program that would give the U.S. government, or any government, direct or “back door” access to our servers. We have worked hard, within the confines of the law, to be open about the data requests we receive.
