Google/Screenshot

Google introduced its new user privacy policy on Friday in advance of a strict, new European data privacy law due to come into effect on May 25.

The actual content of the policy hasn't changed, but Google has updated the language and navigation of the document, and introduced videos and illustrations in order to make it clearer than ever before exactly how it collects and stores user data, as well as how to access it and delete it.

"Although we're taking these steps to make our Privacy Policy easier to understand, it's important to note that nothing is changing about your current settings or how your information is processed," said William Malcolm, Google's Director for privacy and legal in Europe, in a blog post explaining the changes. The company will also email all Google account holders individually to explain the policy, said Malcolm.

The update also allows users to jump straight into their privacy settings from within the policy, helping to make it compliant with the new European legislation. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is designed to give European citizens more control over their data, and it applies to every company that operates online in Europe.

Facebook and Apple have already said they will introduce their own updates in line with the law. GDPR is one of the biggest online privacy overhauls the web has ever seen, and although it's designed to give more protection to European users, it could in many cases also provide more clarity and control to internet users the world over.

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