Google launched the “My Account” hub last year to bring all the account-specific controls for users – especially those about personal data security and privacy – together under one roof. Of course, the My Account hub also contains controls for Google staples such as ads, and making sure you go through the whole nine yards of securing your Google access. As Google celebrates My Account’s first anniversary, their adding new features and new ways to access the hub.
At the top of the pile, we should look at the new “Find Your Phone” feature. Getting your phone lost or stolen is unfortunately a very real possibility these days, so a solid feature such as this is a great help for users. From this batch of controls, “you can not only locate your phone, but also lock and call it, secure your account, leave a callback number on the screen, and more.” Soon, this will even be accessible by making a plaintive plea to the Google app saying “I lost my phone”. This feature will be available both for Android and iOS devices.
Speaking of voice controls, the new My Account hub will now be accessible by voice, by simply doing an “Ok Google, show me my Google account” command, and your phones should take you right to the hub. The command is available in English today, but Google says this will roll out to other languages pretty soon.
Lastly, Google is making the My Account hub more obvious by making it part of Google search results. If you’re signed in, searching for your own name on Google will now give a shortcut to the My Account hub. Pretty cool, eh?
SOURCE: Google
