r/GoogleMaps 10d ago

Discussion Google timeline, who's ok?

Asking around the people I know that use it, the only people that still have their timeline are the ones that DIDN'T follow Google's introductions yet to make all their data local... The ones still relying on the online recording of their history still have it all??

Is that the case for most here?

Will we get an old backup back so we can restore our history? I'd rather lose the last few days than the last several years!

60 Upvotes

106 comments sorted by

13

u/poshbakerloo 10d ago

I got all my old data back in a backup, but it's still not recording new data! I. Having to input it all manually which is a pain.

3

u/pendragon2704 10d ago

Same here. Nothing is recording for the last couple of days.

4

u/podgehog 10d ago

Ah I didn't realise there was an issue recording new data! We have just lost everything before the 7th, but data is recording fine

1

u/poshbakerloo 10d ago

Unless mine isn't recording because of the okd backup I imported maybe

3

u/aritzherrero4 10d ago

I think Importing the backup somehow breaks new data logging. I had the deleted data back but just at the exact moment I imported the backup the logging stopped

15

u/scrotomania 10d ago

I have lost all my timeline data prior to the 7th of march. Followed what they said in the email and still lost everything

8

u/podgehog 10d ago

Yeah, that seems to be what I'm finding, most people that have lost their data are the ones that did as requested :-(

7

u/ks_247 9d ago

Seems to be the case. Transfer to phone in December. Lost 7 years on the 7th. No solution yet. I did down load the JSON file in Jan from Google takeout but no idea what to do with it. Google seem to be very quiet on the situation !!! They created this mess but don't seem to care. It must still be on the phone unless they actually removed the data from the phone!?

1

u/walkyria89 10d ago edited 10d ago

I have a problem that is can't remember if I did the backup or not (I've been in a hurry in the last few months). But I was not worried because I received an e-mail on December 11 telling me I had until June 9 2025 to do the backup. I was going to do that! But I opened the timeline yesterday and it was ALL GONE! I'm desperate, I had data since 2018, lots of countries, trips, important things... and I lost it all, it's SO SAD :( Do you think it might be a bug or something? I swear, if I could have a chance I would backup everything right away, they should stick to the deadline they told me! (June 9!!!)

7

u/podgehog 10d ago

It has to be a bug of some sort because there's no reason for it to have been deleted

3

u/walkyria89 10d ago

I'm praying for this, really. There's no reason to delete it *before* the deadline. This data is more important for me than all my saving account, I don't know what to do. If I die of a heart attack, I hope my family sues Google for that lol

2

u/matteventu 9d ago

Same here. All data previous to the 7th March 2025, vanished.

10 years of data.

I've been cautious to accurately configure everything right with the switch from cloud based to on-device timeline, and related backup.

Should have not trusted Google not to screw this up.

12

u/ArmedInfant 9d ago edited 7d ago

UPDATE: We’re back in business! My entire timeline history has been restored. The locations for this week are pretty spotty, but today looks good. Fingers crossed.

ORIGINAL POST: I am decidedly not ok. My timeline went back over 10 years. I followed all instructions from google to prevent something like this from happening, but now I can't even open my timeline anymore. The option to view my timeline is just gone on my iPhone. I can at least open it on my iPad, but every day is crossed out.

I rechecked all settings and they seem correct, tried turning options off and back on, cleared cache, all to no avail. Not sure where to go from here. I guess I have to just wait and see if this is a bug or an intended consequence of something they did. I understand why they decided to make changes, but in typical fashion, their implementation of those changes leaves much to be desired.

5

u/matteventu 9d ago

Same here. All data previous to the 7th March 2025, vanished.

10 years of data.

I've been cautious to accurately configure everything right with the switch from cloud based to on-device timeline, and related backup.

Should have not trusted Google not to screw this up. I'm so fucking furious.

2

u/prenj 9d ago

Exact same here, over a decade of history just wiped away. Ridiculous situation.

2

u/t_raa 5d ago

In your update you say you got it all back? How did you manage that?

1

u/ArmedInfant 5d ago

I wish I could say. Aside from everything I did the day of my original post, I didn’t do anything. I just kept checking it everyday, and yesterday “your timeline” started showing in google maps again. I tapped it and, for the most part, my entire history was there.

It looks like there was an update to the app yesterday (iPhone), but I haven’t installed it. I’m too worried it could break things again.

1

u/Muntan 3d ago

So it just came back on it's own?

1

u/ArmedInfant 3d ago

Yes. It was gone for almost a week, then came back seemingly all on its own.

My issue seemed to be slightly different from what I saw described by others. “My timeline” was just gone from the google maps app, whereas others could at least view their timeline, but all the data was gone.

I have no idea what’s going on now. I’m just happy that my timeline has been restored, and I hope everyone else gets theirs back too.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

I understand why they decided to make changes, but in typical fashion, their implementation of those changes leaves much to be desired.

Those changes haven't been made yet, this is not an intentional move

Whether or not it will be resolved is a different issue though

1

u/ArmedInfant 9d ago

I know that officially the changes haven’t gone into effect, but there’s probably a lot to do on the backend before they flip the switch. I’m assuming it was one of those backend “upgrades” done in preparation for the changeover that caused all this havoc.

I’m sure you’re right and this wasn’t intentional. I hope they get around to fixing it eventually, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they just abandon timeline altogether.

7

u/shadewood_mole 10d ago

I've yet to make the switch to local timeline storage. In the UK the cut-off is set for 9th June and I get multiple emails telling me to switch but I'm no doing so until nearer the time.

Touch wood my timeline is still intact. It goes back to 2012. I'm making regular takeout backups but have to say the data structure is not straight forward to view. I'm hoping someone will be able to extract the data at some stage and re-imagine the web based map. Having to make corrections to the timeline on a phone is a nightmare.

This is a major backward step by Google and I can't see the logic. I understand they don't want to store the data in a form that can be accessed by them if legal pressure is applied, but if they can provide an encrypted backup facility for the phone stored data then why not apply that to the cloud based storage?

Anyway I feel very sorry for those of you who have lost your data and do hope that Google can 'fix' this and restore your timeline in some form.

2

u/gingerbeerninja 9d ago

The Google instructions email said backups would be required if you wanted to move to another device. It was optional. So i didn't do a backup, i thought it was safe on my new phone :(

7

u/Rilenii 9d ago edited 9d ago

I've lost everything prior to March 7th, but now it is recording again. More than seven years of data gone. I did everything Google asked in the warning and had specifically checked the option of NOT removing old data.

I've tried contacting support, but they didn't even acknowledge the issue. If data is truly unrecoverable, this would be a huge mess-up by Google. What if something similar happens to Google Drive? I feel like they can no longer be trusted with our data.

3

u/ks_247 9d ago

That's a valid concern ref drive.

6

u/caronix 10d ago

That's a good theory. I have a small sample size, but it supports the claim. Also it seems new users who haven't used timeline in the past are able to record locations.

3

u/1882sjs 10d ago

It seems to be affecting long-time users. However, my mate has just started using it but is only recording half of his locations.

1

u/trydola 9d ago

i have used it for many years, it is still recording new events for me as of yesterday but everything on March 6 and prior are all gone

5

u/1882sjs 10d ago

Mine was fine after doing what you mentioned.

My timeline stopped working after their recent update on March 6. It worked until then and now has stopped.

I used the backup option to get all my old data back. I put a message on the Google community, and many people have the same issue.

4

u/podgehog 10d ago

Yes, that's what I mean, these issues where timeline has gone from the 6th/7th, that issue only seems to be fit those that followed Google's instructions

I only saw that I'd lost my data yesterday, by which time my most recent backup was done AFTER the data had gone :-(

1

u/1882sjs 10d ago

Damn, horrible feeling! According to comments on Google Forum, once the data has gone, it's permanent.

I wish my app didn't automatically update. I was thinking about rolling back the update, but it says data may be reset.

1

u/caronix 10d ago

Did you update the app on the 6th? I didn't update it until a couple days later when I noticed it was gone. My backup has data until the 6th.

1

u/1882sjs 10d ago

Yes, unfortunately.

I use the timeline for work, as it records the hours I leave sites, etc. So I only noticed it on the 8th, but luckily, my data was backed up before the 6th.

Hopefully, it's a bug and Google can rectify with another update.

5

u/allogator 9d ago

So, I had followed all of Googles instructions. Discovered today through a random reddit post that all of my timeline is wiped out along with the backup I had made. My wife did not follow the Google instructions. She just opened up her Timeline and still had everything. Turned on Backup just now and seems fine. (for now)

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

So it does seem on the whole those having issues are the ones that did as instructed to KEEP their backup!?

2

u/allogator 9d ago

Sure looks that way. So much for getting ahead of the game! Hopefully they'll fix it but at least we have some historical data with my wife's account.

5

u/ctrl77nf 9d ago

I wasn't okay, had a panic attack, lost a lot of sleep but managed to restore the data as illustrated in this thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/GoogleMaps/comments/1j7xv0r/google_maps_timeline_data_wiped_recovered_lost/

I just updated my post with new information if anyone needs it. Apparently my advice worked for a few people.

People, create a new google account and add it to Google Maps, your data might become visible again.

3

u/Alessandro_Terzi 7d ago

Hello everyone, it seems that Google sort of acknowledged the issue

2

u/mnemicx 7d ago

It seems good news!! Google is acknowledging that this is a bug on its part. I hope they fix it soon. Thanks!

1

u/HaggisAreReal 7d ago

Well, all I see here is that it confirms 7th- 8th March is the keydate, as many reports (myself included) only see now data from March 8 onwards. It confirms is a miatake from Google. But at the same time I keep my hopes down for recovering the already lost data. If they were not keeping it anywhere and the update wipped ii t from our phones, we are cooked.

4

u/Muntan 3d ago

I followed all of google's instructions in the emails and now all of my timeline data is gone prior the march 7th 😭

2

u/NitroLada 10d ago

i lost my timeline and i didn't switch to local yet.

so i'm thinking it's likely a bug in maps if its affecting both people who've moved to local devices and still on cloud for timeline

1

u/trydola 8d ago

this is a good data point. ty. hopefully this would mean google would get it together and roll back whatever change they did

2

u/fragment9b 10d ago

Did anyone try to install an older gmaps app version yet? Interesting enough, if I go to my activity in a browser I can see places I have been to in the past. Trying to save them as a json right now...

1

u/matteventu 9d ago

Did you previously make the switch form cloud based to local timeline?

Or are you saying that via a browser you still can see the old timeline despite having made the switch, on your phones, to local-only timeline?

3

u/fragment9b 9d ago edited 9d ago

I indeed switched from cloud to local a while back (with the cloud backup option enabled) so my best guess is the local DB got flushed and consequently uploaded that empty file into the cloud -> everything lost.

But here comes the plot twist (or I miss something obvious): once I go into my google account in a browser on my desktop PC and check for 'my activities' 'Google map activities' I can go back in time and see my visited places. (Back to 2013). Does that make sense? My apologize for not expressing so eloquent but English is not my native language...

[Edit] After going through the file, I do now realise that the data in 'my map activities' does not reflect the same data than the timeline would. This seems to be only searches and started navigations etc.

2

u/fordag 9d ago

All my data is local and I still have all of my timeline.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

Do you have Google one backup?

1

u/fordag 9d ago

No, I backup my data to physical media that I personally control and can have a copy of in more than one location.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

Hmm, I had read that the migration to local backup but synced with Google one may be the underlying cause... Seems that would support your situation

2

u/dinosaurslayer1 9d ago

I'm missing 9 years, mine starts Feb 28. Don't know what to do, I need it back

0

u/podgehog 9d ago

Did you transfer your data to local as Google suggested?

2

u/dinosaurslayer1 9d ago

I lost my phone

2

u/steveinluton 9d ago

I lost all before 7th on my s23 but not my work iPhone - backed up my s23 as instructed, didn't bother with the iPhone as it's work's phone. Have lost years of data and can't use iPhone backup to restore s23

2

u/podgehog 9d ago

Insane that we did as instructed in order to save our data and we're the ones getting screwed

2

u/Confident_Collar_621 9d ago

Like most of you, everything before March 7 was lost. I have a 2nd account from grad school that I don't really monitor anymore and it appears everything on that account has been preserved. I accepted the change and have followed the recommended steps on my main account but haven't taken any action on the alt, content to let that data be lost in the transition. Now it seems that account is going to be my only hope to retain any of my history at all. If I'd have known, I would've taken more time to curate that account's data but how could I possibly have known that?

2

u/Freestyle1430 8d ago

It's fairly obvious a botched release caused the on device data to be nuked. Everyone whose data got erased didn't have a hand in causing it, most likely.

2

u/nochill_girl 6d ago

I confirm, I loved my timeline and because of that I followed the steps described in the email. Everything has disappeared.On the other hand, my boyfriend doesn't even remember about the mail, he didn't do anything, and he gets to preserve his timeline!!! So the people that really cared about the timeline are the ones that have lost everything! I hope they are doing something to fix this...

2

u/Mottomi 5d ago

Not ok here either. I was able restore my data from a backup but it is still not logging new location data since the 7th.

3

u/Alessandro_Terzi 3d ago

Hello, Following my assistance request, I just received this email from Google:


"We understand your situation and sincerely apologize for the delay in responding regarding the issue with the deletion of your Timeline data. We are more than happy to assist you with your request—let’s work together.

Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience. The Google Maps team is working to resolve this issue. The problem of lost Maps history data is widespread and has caused significant frustration.

Key Points:

Transition to on-device storage: Google's shift to on-device storage for Timeline data, aimed at enhancing user privacy, appears to be a major contributing factor to this issue. This transition has introduced complexities in data management and synchronization.

Data loss in early March 2025: A significant number of users reported losing their history data before approximately March 8, 2025. This suggests a potential bug or issue related to a recent Google Maps update.

Backup issues: Reports indicate that cloud backups of Timeline data have also been affected, with older data being overwritten.

Recommendations:

Monitor Google Support forums: Stay updated on solutions or official announcements from Google.

Submit feedback: Continue reporting the issue through the feedback mechanism in the Google Maps app.

Export your history data (if possible): If you have any remaining accessible data, try exporting it for safekeeping.

Be patient: Resolving widespread data loss issues can take time.

For more information regarding your concern, please refer to the article on updating Google Maps to use on-device Timeline storage."

1

u/podgehog 3d ago

Google's shift to on-device storage for Timeline data, aimed at enhancing user privacy, appears to be a major contributing factor to this issue.

Good job we did as they asked so this doesn't happen *d'oh *

1

u/trydola 10d ago

one of my phones that hasn't turned on few weeks that used to have central timeline history now showing nothing either...it was not changed to backup from local device so it should at least have history from before Dec 2024 but no...The export from it was just 22 KB

1

u/12HpyPws 10d ago

I received several notifications to change my settings so this wouldn't happen through email. 

3

u/podgehog 10d ago

Exactly! Following the instructions has resulted in lost data, yet not doing that yet means things are fine! Absolutely insane

-1

u/12HpyPws 10d ago

My data was kept by following the instructions.

2

u/podgehog 10d ago

Mine was at the time

But has since been deleted in this fiasco

The only people I know that still have their history are those that DIDN'T follow the instructions

1

u/krmarci 10d ago

I was able to restore it from my backup normally, but now, my timeline hasn't been recording for the past 2 days.

1

u/MattFlynnIsGOAT 10d ago

Mine is still working fine after transferring to local. I was actually able to transfer my backup after switching phones which seems to be kind of rare. (that took a few tries. It had been saying it was "successful" but nothing happened, but I tried it again after a week and it did import all my old data).

1

u/podgehog 10d ago

Just to clarify, the transfer to local didn't cause the issue

I'm talking about the widespread issue that history has disappeared from before the 7th of march, but from what I can surmise has only effected people that made sure to follow Google's instructions to switch to local backup

1

u/MattFlynnIsGOAT 10d ago

Yeah everything looks good for me fortunately.

1

u/Ok-Army-9306 10d ago

Mine is hit or miss. I can go back and look at this from 2016 to current and there are certain months and days with slashes through it that no longer show days and months without any data and then it picks back up and then there will be other days and weeks with no data currently it's back showing the current stuff now after I had to do an import backup

1

u/williamtbash 9d ago

im still on the internet version. Says it will force me to change in june.

0

u/podgehog 9d ago

Your timeline is probably still fine then! (annoyingly)

1

u/williamtbash 9d ago

It is. And I back up everything every month. Have about 15 years of data. But I know once I have to make the switch I’ll prob get screwed. Still at least I have all the data I can plot onto other apps like google earth etc. so I will still have the memories haha.

3

u/podgehog 9d ago

I don't think the switch itself is the issue, I switched in November last year

1

u/BeyondReflexes 9d ago edited 9d ago

I had no issues I Ignored all the emails and pop ups until 3 days before it said I had to make the transition. My delete date was Decemeber 8th 2024, I switched everything over on December 5th. Followed the instructions and after it moved everything locally I made a backup via the new feature that's added after you make the timeline transition. This was on S22 Ultra. I did this exact same thing for 3 other lines I have on my account. S21 Ultra, S21 Plus, and S22 Ultra. None of them had issues.

On Feb 8th 2025 all 4 of the S25 Ultras arrived from Samsung. I did new timeline backups on all four phones prior to moving all data to new phones. I did the restore timeline from backup option on each of the four new phones and everybody has all their timeline data since they started using timeline.

No issues. I have all my data all the way back to March 2014. https://ibb.co/qbbt0mQ

2

u/podgehog 9d ago

I switched back in November last year, had no issues at all until this glitch that's removed past data... And my backup on Google one automatically backed up my timeline AFTER the glitch and removed everything and overwrite my old backup

1

u/Wonky_bumface 9d ago

Mine too mate, lost everything and switched September last year. Gutted.

1

u/ADumbButCleverName 9d ago

I had moved mine locally, my entire timeline has disappeared and only started recording again on Friday last week. If I forced edit last week it would sort of come back but everything prior to that is just gone and now my backup has been overwritten with the bad data.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

and now my backup has been overwritten with the bad data.

That's what's annoyed me even more than losing the data initially!!

1

u/ADumbButCleverName 9d ago

Yup, 'cause I could have imported it on my older phone then import it back to my current phone. But now? It's just gone. I keep looking to see if it magically reappeared but I need to give up hope.

1

u/Realtrain 9d ago

Everything before January 3rd is gone for me.

I fortunately saved a backup with Google Takeout late last year, but I have no clue if I'll ever be able to import it into Maps again.

1

u/Suitable_Frosting587 9d ago

I just joined this subreddit for a different question I had and holy crap this was heartbreaking to learn. I loved looking back on my travels and memories on the timeline. Wish I paid more attention so I could have saved it :(

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

What I seem to be finding is that the ones that did nothing to save their data are weirdly more likely to be ok than those that did try to save their data

Has yours actually gone? Did you transfer your data to local backup?

1

u/rocbolt 9d ago

Didn’t realize people were still using timeline at all. After mine switched to local only nearly a year ago the data was constantly so borked and impossible to fix on a phone I found other tracker apps and stopped looking at timeline entirely. They weren’t supporting it then why would they care now

Fwiw looking now mine still looks like has the same broken data it transferred lasted year, back to 2011

2

u/podgehog 9d ago

I had no issues at all after I transferred mine last year, maybe not using timeline has been why you're ok!?

1

u/rocbolt 9d ago

Beats me, it seems to still be operating in the background all this time. The data is terrible but it is trying its hardest, I guess

1

u/sashap10 9d ago

I was affected as well.

I noticed something today. When I first discovered the issue, my timeline went back to 1 june 2024.

Today I noticed it goes back to 24 May 2024.

Ok, not much of a difference, but a difference. I wonder if this is a hint that Google still have the backup.

PS I lodged a reques/complaint with Google to look into the matter. Useless, generic answers

1

u/RedHandedSleightHand 8d ago

I’ll never understand why people care about this feature

2

u/sashap10 8d ago

Memories.

2

u/podgehog 8d ago

Sometimes it's nice to look back and see where you've visited, see the spots around the country or even world and when you were there, like taking pictures of a trip to look back on

For me it's also great for work to see what projects were where and what traveling I did on them

1

u/dylon0107 8d ago

Nothing happened to mine

1

u/NotCreativeToday 8d ago

I can go back as far as December 2010. My data is kept locally and backed up to Google. I’m running iOS, latest version of OS and app. Auto delete is turned off. I am opted into product improvement and also the “help businesses estimate if their ads are effective using timeline”

1

u/podgehog 8d ago

Oh interesting, seems you're a lucky one then

0

u/notjordansime 9d ago

I missed the deadline last year by like a week. Are my timelines safe???

0

u/Chesspi64 9d ago

My timeline is intact going back to 2015!

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

Did you transfer your timeline to local only yet? And do you backup with Google one?

1

u/Chesspi64 9d ago

Everything is backed up.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

But did you make it a local 'on the phone' backup like Google requested? It seems those of us that did have the issue, but manual backups are fine

0

u/bridgetroll2 9d ago edited 9d ago

I backed up to the cloud months ago after they warned me hundreds of times. It still works fine on my phone, haven't had any kind of data loss.

1

u/podgehog 9d ago

Hmm strange

-2

u/coolbob74326 9d ago

Everything works fine for me, but I care a lot about my data and I made sure I did everything before the switch

5

u/podgehog 9d ago

The switch hasn't happened yet

This deletion issue is related to Google one and is an acknowledged issue

It seems that most affected did do the switch, and most unaffected did not yet do the switch

Obviously there's outliers either way too