Google is quietly killing a major security feature that millions of users relied on

Google is removing the dark web report feature that millions of people used to check if their personal information was leaked online. This is a major change because the service was available to anyone with a Google account. If you use this tool right now, you need to know it won’t be around much longer.

According to Android Police, Google will stop checking for new data breaches on January 15, 2026. After that, on February 16, 2026, you won’t be able to see any dark web reports at all. If you want one final check, you need to do it before these dates.

Google says they’re shutting down the service because the reports weren’t useful enough. People complained that the feature didn’t tell them what to do after finding out their information was exposed. Learning your data is leaked is scary, but without clear steps to fix the problem, the report just creates panic without offering real help.

The company is shifting focus to more practical security tools instead

Google isn’t giving up on security completely. They plan to work on other security features that give users clear actions they can take to protect themselves. This change might bring better and more helpful security options to Google accounts in the future.

The dark web report wasn’t always free for everyone. It started as a paid feature for Google One subscribers only. Later, Google opened it up to all users, which helped millions of people learn about potential data leaks they wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. Google has been making several updates to its services lately, including solving a major driving annoyance in Maps.

Losing this feature is annoying, but it’s not a disaster. The reality is that your information is probably already leaked somewhere online through data breaches you had no control over. There’s so much leaked data out there that Google basically decided monitoring everything was pointless.

The best way to protect yourself is to be proactive. Use services that watch your credit cards and personal accounts closely. You can’t rely on just one tool to keep you safe. While Google continues to expand its AI capabilities significantly, security features like the dark web report are being phased out.

Most people don’t need to do anything before the shutdown. The reports will stop updating in January, and Google will delete all the data in February. However, if you want to remove your data right now, you can delete your monitoring profile yourself. Go to your Google account, find the dark web report section, click “Edit monitoring profile,” and delete it. This removes all your reports immediately. If you need more ways to protect your privacy, there are many guides available for Android and other systems.