Privacy by Editorial Team

What Your Phone's AI Collects and How to Turn It Off

Apple, Google and Samsung all put AI in your pocket. Here is what each one sends to a server, which switches stop it, and what no setting can undo.

Your phone now ships with an assistant that can find information and take action inside your apps. Apple, Google and Samsung each ship one, and all three document how it handles your data. What they do not agree on is where the switch lives.

The question worth answering is not the broad one about whether these assistants train on your data. It is which switch stops what, because the settings are nested, the names differ across platforms, and on one of them a single toggle switches off all cloud processing for the built-in features.

This is a walkthrough of documented settings rather than a laboratory test. Every path below comes from the vendor’s own support documentation and can be checked on your own handset.

TL;DR

  • Apple’s assistant is mostly local, and the exceptions are auditable. “In many cases, Apple Intelligence models run entirely on device so that a task can be completed without data leaving your device”, and a report of the requests sent to Private Cloud Compute can be exported from Settings > Privacy & Security > Apple Intelligence Report (Apple Support).
  • The Cloud Compute promise is narrow and checkable. “The data being processed in Private Cloud Compute is not stored or made accessible to Apple. It is processed only to fulfill your request” (Apple Support).
  • The ChatGPT extension is a separate switch from Siri. Settings > Siri > ChatGPT holds “Use ChatGPT”, “Confirm Requests” and “Setup Prompts” (Apple Support).
  • Google’s Gemini app records by default. “If you’re 18 or over, Keep Activity is on by default”, and the default auto-delete window is 18 months (Google).
  • Turning recording off does not stop all saving. Even with Keep Activity off, Google says conversations are saved with the account “for up to 72 hours” (Google).
  • Samsung ships a single master switch. Settings > Galaxy AI > “Process data only on device” disables cloud-based processing for Galaxy AI features (Samsung Support).
  • Permissions, not settings, are the lever for third-party AI apps. Android puts them at Settings > Apps > app > Permissions, with device-wide camera and microphone controls under Privacy controls (Android Help).

What actually leaves your phone

Apple documents an on-device tier for its assistant and a cloud tier for the requests that are too demanding. Its iPhone User Guide states that “In many cases, Apple Intelligence models run entirely on device so that a task can be completed without data leaving your device”, and that for heavier work Apple Intelligence “can use Private Cloud Compute, which extends the privacy and security of your Apple products like iPhone into the cloud”. Apple describes what happens to a request there: “only the data that is relevant to your request is processed on Apple silicon servers, before being removed”. Apple adds that “Independent privacy and security researchers can inspect the code that runs on Apple silicon servers that enable Private Cloud Compute to verify this privacy promise at any time”. Private Cloud Compute is not available in every region.

Google documents a cloud service with an activity log. Its Gemini Apps Privacy Hub lists what the app collects, including prompts you type or speak, files, photos, videos and screens you share, Gemini Live transcripts and recordings, feedback, generated content, information from Connected Apps, app, browser and device information, location information and subscription information. Some chats are reviewed by people: Google says “A subset of chats are reviewed by human reviewers (including Google’s trained service providers) to help improve Google services”, and that reviewers “assess if Gemini Apps’ responses were low-quality, inaccurate, or harmful” and “suggest better responses”. Google also notes that “Chats are disconnected from your account before being sent to service providers”. Reviewed chats are a separate store, and they are “retained for up to three years” even after you delete your activity.

Samsung documents both, and splits them explicitly. Its support page says “Most translations are handled on the device itself” and that “Edit Suggestions within the Gallery are handled on-device”, but “Most other features require a network connection and will utilize the cloud in some way”. The on-device list covers translation, the time-and-weather Ambient wallpapers, and Google Messages features including Magic Compose, message suggestions and rewrite suggestions. The cloud list covers “Auto formatting, auto summarizing, auto corrections, and image editing”.

iPhone: the switches that stop what

Everything on this side sits under Settings > Siri, across the Requests, Responses, Your Information, Highlight to Search, Automatic Visual Look Up, Excluded Apps and Suggestions settings documented in Apple’s iPhone User Guide. The order below is the order worth working through.

Settings > Siri > ChatGPT. This is where the extension lives. Turning off “Use ChatGPT” removes it; turning off “Setup Prompts” stops Siri suggesting it. The “Confirm Requests” option decides whether Siri asks before handing anything over; turning it off lets Siri send requests to ChatGPT without asking. Apple’s guide notes that this option “isn’t available if you’re using Siri AI”, adding “You must first ask ChatGPT before a prompt, photos, or files are sent to ChatGPT”. With Siri AI on, the extension sits under Settings > Siri > Extensions > ChatGPT, where the switch is “Use Extension”. A separate link, “About ChatGPT Extension & Privacy”, sits on the same screen.

Settings > Siri > Excluded Apps. Apple explains that “When you give Siri access to an app, Siri can find information and take action in that app”, and that excluded apps “aren’t available to Siri, Search, or suggestions”. All apps are included by default, so this list starts empty and is the place to put the apps holding your messages, your mail and your photos.

Settings > Siri > Highlight to Search and Automatic Visual Look Up. These are the two that act on the camera and on your screenshots. Apple describes the first, which applies to Siri AI only, as a setting that “automatically searches the web when you highlight using Siri mode in Camera or screenshots”, and the second as one that “automatically identifies objects and places that appear in screenshots”.

Settings > Siri > Suggestions. “Suggestions are on by default, but you can turn them off at any time”, and the sub-switches are “Allow Notifications”, “Show in App Library”, “Show When Sharing” and “Show Listening Suggestions”, plus a per-app “Show in App” list.

Settings > Siri > Requests and Responses. Requests controls activation: “Siri” or “Hey Siri” can be set to Off, “Press Side Button for Siri” activates it with the side button, and “Type to Siri” is for people who would rather not talk. Responses holds “Prefer Silent Responses”, “Always Show Siri Captions”, “Always Show Request” and “Automatically Send Messages”, which is the one that lets Siri send a message with no confirmation.

Settings > Privacy & Security > Apple Intelligence Report. This is the one control on the list that lets you audit what was sent to Private Cloud Compute rather than just turning something off. You choose a duration of “the last 15 minutes (default) or last 7 days”, hit Export Activity, and the file is saved as “Apple_Intelligence_Report.json”.

Android: the switches that stop what

gemini.google.com > Settings & help > Activity. Near the top, the “Keep Activity” control offers “Turn off”, and the same menu offers “Turn off and delete activity”. Google states plainly that “If you’re 18 or over, Keep Activity is on by default”. The same page exposes the auto-delete window, with options for 3, 18 or 36 months or “Don’t auto-delete activity”, and “your Gemini Apps activity older than 18 months is auto-deleted” under the default.

The audio and Live checkbox. Under Settings and help > Activity there is a box labelled “Improve Google services with your audio and Gemini Live videos & screenshares”. Google notes “This setting is off by default”, and that enabling it requires Keep Activity to be on. That is the switch behind microphone and screen-share data used to improve services, including training generative models.

Google Account > Activity controls. Web & App Activity “saves your activity from some Google services, like Google Assistant, Google TV, Google Store, Google for Developers, and the Google Help Center, in your Google Account”, and what it saves can include “Assistant interactions” and “Info about your browsing and other activity on sites, apps, and devices that use Google services”, and the Web & App Activity help page describes choosing “Turn off” or “Turn off and delete activity”. Google notes that these settings are being updated for its Search services, so the screens may not match.

The Gemini app’s own entry points. In the app, Menu > profile picture > Settings holds “Talk to Gemini hands-free”, where you can turn off “Hey Google”, and “Gemini on lock screen”, where “Use Gemini without unlocking” goes off. Android also lets you take Gemini off the power button under Settings > System > Gestures > “Press & hold power button”, and to change or remove the default under Settings > Apps > Default apps > Digital assistant app. Google’s manage Gemini on Android page warns that deleting the app does not remove it as the default digital assistant, so both steps are needed.

Samsung Galaxy: one master switch

Samsung’s is the easiest of the three to reason about because the vendor publishes the split. In Settings > Galaxy AI (on some devices, Advanced features first), the switch called “Process data only on device” is documented as a “master switch” to disable all cloud-based processing for the Galaxy AI features. Individual features can also be turned off from the Galaxy AI menu or from the settings of the apps that use them, which Samsung lists as Phone, Notes, Camera, Gallery, Samsung Messages, Samsung Health and SmartThings.

The limit is stated in the same place. Samsung notes that “some AI features may be integrated into the system and cannot be disabled”, so the master switch is the best available control rather than a complete one.

Third-party AI apps: permissions are the real control

The assistant built into the operating system is the part most settings screens describe. The apps you installed yourself are governed by the permission system, which is a separate question.

On Android, Settings > Apps > app > Permissions shows the permissions you have allowed or denied for that app. Google’s list of permission types includes Calendar, Call logs, Camera, Contacts, Files, Health, Wellness, Fitness, Location, Microphone, Music and audio, Nearby devices, Notifications, Phone, Photos and videos, Physical activity and SMS. Settings > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Permission manager groups the same permissions by type instead. “Allow only while using the app” means the app “can use the permission only when you’re using that app”, which is the setting worth choosing for anything that holds a microphone. Two device-wide brakes sit under Settings > Security & privacy > Privacy > Privacy controls: “Camera access” and “Microphone access”. Permissions for unused apps can also be removed automatically with “Pause app activity if unused”.

On iOS the equivalent controls sit in two places instead. The Excluded Apps list decides what Siri and Search can reach, and Apple’s ChatGPT guide lists what is sent when Siri hands a request to ChatGPT, with more detail on the “About ChatGPT Extension & Privacy” screen.

What the switches do not undo

Turning a switch off changes what happens next. It does not reverse what has already been stored, and on two of the three platforms it comes with a catch worth reading before you pull the switch.

Google is explicit that even when Keep Activity is off, conversations “will be saved with your account for up to 72 hours”, and that this activity “won’t appear in your Gemini Apps Activity”. The Privacy Hub adds that even with Keep Activity off, Google still uses chats to respond and to protect its services, including with help from human reviewers. Reviewed chats are a separate store: Google says they “are not deleted when you delete your activity” and are “retained for up to three years”.

Apple’s catch runs the other way. Apple says certain features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, “including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts”, and that “Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future” (Apple Support). Apple’s own documentation adds that Siri AI is “available in beta on iOS 27 or later”, is not initially available in the EU on iOS, and is not available in China mainland.

The ChatGPT extension inside Siri has its own condition. Apple’s guide says that when you use the extension without an account, OpenAI “must not use your request to improve or train its models”, and that OpenAI “does not receive any information tied to your Apple Account”. Sign in to a ChatGPT account and the terms change: “your ChatGPT account settings and OpenAI’s data privacy policies apply”. What OpenAI may do with a request therefore depends on whether you are signed in.

The bottom line

On iPhone, start with Settings > Siri > ChatGPT, because that switch also decides whether Siri hands anything to a third party, then move to Excluded Apps, then to the Apple Intelligence Report to check what your phone has sent to Private Cloud Compute. On Android, the Keep Activity toggle is the main one, and it is worth pairing with a shorter auto-delete window and the audio and Live improvement box left off. On Samsung, one switch, “Process data only on device”, turns off cloud-based processing for Galaxy AI features, though Samsung notes some AI features cannot be disabled.

Then check the permissions of the AI apps you installed yourself, because no assistant setting governs an app that already holds microphone access. A switch that stops the next thing is worth having. Removing what has already been stored is a separate job, and Google documents how long its copies are held: up to 72 hours with Keep Activity off, and up to three years for reviewed chats.