Google Maps Timeline is a personal map showing places you visited on a certain date or during a particular month. Google Maps uses the data in your Timeline to improve the recommendations it makes about which restaurants to try and places to visit. Since the data shows your typical travel patterns, Google Maps might use it to show you more accurate ETA times and personalized routes.
You’ll also be asked whether you want to disable Timeline and permanently delete all of your saved routes and visits, or keep the feature enabled. If you decide to keep the data you will be asked to move your Timeline on to your current device. Keeping this data on your device instead of having it sent to Google should make it more secure.
Google wants you to update your settings for Google Maps Timeline. | Image credit-PhoneArena
If you subscribe to the Google Opinion Rewards app which asks you survey questions in response for cash (iOS) or Play Store credit (Android), your Timeline data can be used to show you more personalized surveys to answer. Google wants you to inform it whether you are willing to have your Timeline data used for more personalized survey questions.
While you might consider Timeline to be just another way Google gets into your business, before you decide to delete the feature keep in mind that it does allow Google Maps to display personalized routes you’ve taken before that might help you get to your destination faster.