Gemini is safe for everyday work if you treat a personal account as something Google can read: Google says some chats are checked by human reviewers, reviewed chats are kept for up to three years even after you delete your activity, and it asks you not to enter anything confidential. As of October 2026 the safer routes are temporary chats, turning Keep Activity off, or a qualifying work account, where Google says chats aren't reviewed by humans or used to improve its AI models.
This isn't a security audit. It's what Google's own Gemini help pages and privacy hub say, translated into plain English, with the parts a business owner should notice pulled to the top.
Who can see what you type into Gemini
Google says a subset of chats is reviewed by human reviewers, including trained reviewers from its service providers. They check whether Gemini's answers were low quality, inaccurate or harmful and suggest better ones, and chats are also reviewed to keep Gemini safe and to deal with breaches of Google's terms.
Two details from the privacy hub matter here. Chats are disconnected from your account before they're sent to service providers, and Google says it doesn't sell your personal information. But the instruction that follows is plain: don't enter confidential information you wouldn't want a reviewer to see, or Google to use to improve its services.
There's a less obvious one too. When Gemini uses screen automation to do tasks in Android apps, it takes screenshots that can include anything visible, and those screenshots are reviewed by trained reviewers if Keep Activity is on. Google's own advice in that section is not to enter login or payment information into Gemini chats.
How long Google keeps Gemini chats
| Setting or situation | What Google says, as of October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Keep Activity on (the default if you're 18 or over) | Activity is stored in your Google Account and auto-deleted after 18 months, unless you change it to 3 or 36 months or turn auto-delete off |
| Chats reviewed by humans | Kept for up to three years, disconnected from your account, and not deleted when you delete your activity |
| Keep Activity off | Saved with your account for up to 72 hours to provide the service and process feedback; not shown in your activity |
| Temporary chats | Kept for 72 hours, answered using the last 24 hours of the chat as context, and not used to train Google's AI models |
| Audio, Gemini Live video and screenshares | Not used to improve Google services by default; that setting starts off |
| Qualifying work or school accounts | Chats and uploaded files aren't reviewed by human reviewers or used to improve generative AI models |
The three-year row is the one I'd underline. Deleting your history afterwards doesn't reach chats that have already been reviewed, so deleting isn't a substitute for not pasting something in. You can still tidy the rest, and this guide to deleting your Gemini history covers the steps.
Feedback has its own rule that surprises people. If you send feedback, Google collects the last 24 hours of your chats as context, along with any uploads, and reviewed feedback is kept for up to 3 years. A quick thumbs down on an answer shares more than the one answer.
Temporary chats and switching Keep Activity off
A temporary chat is Google's route for things you don't want Gemini to remember or use to personalise your experience. It isn't used to train Google's AI models, and it's gone from your account after 72 hours.
Turning Keep Activity off goes further, for every future chat. On a computer, go to gemini.google.com, click Settings & help, then Activity, and choose Turn off or Turn off and delete activity. Your future chats won't appear in your activity and won't be used to train Google's models unless you send feedback. The trade-off: some Connected Apps stop working, and chats with Gems aren't saved.
Neither option is a cloak, though. Google says that even with Keep Activity off or in a temporary chat, it still uses your chats to respond to you and to help protect Google, its users and the public, including with help from human reviewers. If you're also wondering what Gemini remembers about you between chats, that's a separate setting, explained in my guide to Gemini's saved info.
Prompt injection and shared Canvas apps
Prompt injection is when someone hides instructions in content you later ask Gemini to work with, hoping to make it do something you didn't intend. Google says Gemini may block suspicious inputs, warn you that content carries security risks, leave the suspicious part out, or not respond at all. Its example: ask Gemini to summarise your emails and, if one contains malicious content, it may decline for safety reasons.
Canvas apps are the other one to watch. They're shared through public links, and in an app that shares data between users, that data sits in a public database that anyone with the link can view and edit. Google's advice:
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- Check who created a Canvas app, not just who sent it. The person sharing may not be the maker.
- Don't put sensitive or private information into a shared app; the creator can see it.
- Be very wary of any app asking for passwords or payment details.
- Think twice before granting an app access to your camera or microphone.
- Treat public Gemini chats and Canvas apps from unknown sources the way you'd treat a dodgy email link.
Work accounts versus personal accounts
This is where the answer changes most. Google Workspace licences that include the Gemini app as a core service come with what Google calls enterprise-grade data protections. On those editions, Google says your chats and uploaded files won't be reviewed by human reviewers or otherwise used to improve generative AI models. Your administrator controls activity settings, so you may not be able to change retention yourself. For how Gemini fits into a work setup, see my guide to Gemini in Google Workspace.
One safety point applies to every account. Google's own line is that Gemini is AI and can make mistakes, including about people. Check anything you'll publish or act on.
What I'd never paste into a personal Gemini chat
- Client passwords, login codes or payment details
- Contracts or documents under an NDA
- Personal data about clients or staff
- Unreleased financial figures or deal terms
- Anything you'd be uncomfortable seeing quoted back to you by a stranger
My verdict: I'd use Gemini freely for drafting, research and ideas, and for anything sensitive I'd use a temporary chat or a qualifying work account. Skip pasting client secrets into a personal chat with Keep Activity on, however convenient it feels. If you'd rather not have Gemini on your devices at all, here's how to turn it off. These settings change often, so check Google's own privacy hub for the latest.
If you need a plain-English view of what your team can safely put into Gemini, that's the kind of AI enablement I help with. I run AI training and workshops for teams, and help businesses with AI enablement and workflow automation, so the busywork runs itself and people get time back. Most of that work is with SaaS marketing teams and small businesses. Here's how we can work together.
Frequently asked questions
Is Gemini safe to use for business?
For everyday drafting and research, yes, as long as you follow Google's own advice not to enter confidential information. For sensitive material, use a temporary chat or a qualifying Google Workspace account, where Google says chats aren't reviewed by humans or used to improve its models.
Does Google read my Gemini chats?
Google says a subset of chats is reviewed by human reviewers, including trained reviewers from its service providers, and that chats are disconnected from your account before they're sent to those providers.
How long does Gemini keep my chats?
By default, activity is auto-deleted after 18 months, which you can change to 3 or 36 months or switch off. Chats reviewed by humans are kept for up to three years and aren't deleted when you delete your activity.
Are Gemini temporary chats private?
They're kept for 72 hours and not used to train Google's AI models, but Google still uses them to respond to you and help protect its users, including with help from human reviewers.
Is Gemini safe with a work account?
On Workspace editions with enterprise-grade data protections, Google says chats and uploaded files aren't reviewed by human reviewers or used to improve generative AI models. Your administrator controls the activity settings.
