r/assholedesign

Google’s deletion handling does not comply with the GDPR

There’s a real problem with how Google handles “deletion” in its AI products.
What they call deletion is basically retention, and this goes directly against what the GDPR requires.

GDPR separates two things:

• storage limitation → you can keep data only as long as needed
• erasure → when the user deletes something, it must be removed fully, irreversibly, and without delay

Google’s own docs say stuff like:

• “deleted” prompts are kept for 30 days
• full deletion can take up to 60 days
• account‑linked AI data is stored for months
• non‑linked AI data is stored for years
• and “deleted” or “de‑identified” data is still used for development

This is not deletion.
This is retention with a different label.

I recorded a video showing the behaviour:
I press delete → Google says it’s deleted → I reopen the chat → the supposedly deleted content instantly reappears in Gmail’s special view, and Chrome History logs the access in real time.

So the deletion only happens on the UI.
The backend still has the data and still uses it.

GDPR doesn’t allow replacing deletion with anonymization, and it doesn’t allow calling retention “deletion”.
These are separate legal concepts.

Bottom line:
Google’s “deletion” implementation is not compatible with GDPR erasure requirements.

Sources are in the comments because AutoMod keeps flagging links.

I need to share this because it perfectly shows how a bureaucratic system can fail.
I’m a Hungarian auditor, and I discovered that Google AI’s “Delete” button is a Dark Pattern — it only hides the chat from the interface while the data remains fully accessible on their servers. I have 80+ videos, server‑signed SMTP headers, and internal docs‑share IDs proving this.

I posted my findings to r/assholedesign**. The post reached thousands of views and became the #1 post — until the moderators removed it, claiming my technical report was “AI‑generated content”.**

So I made a second post explaining that I’m a real person from Hungary and I use a translator because I don’t speak English. What happened?
They removed that post too, this time citing the rule “Don’t be an Ass to Others”, and then muted me for 28 days.

Anyone can look at my original post and see that I wasn’t rude to anyone. I simply presented evidence.

This is a public‑interest disclosure. It demonstrates two things:

• Google’s Deception: the “Delete” button does not delete anything.
• Reddit’s Censorship: the moderation team is suppressing evidence‑based criticism of a Big Tech company under false pretenses.

I am not an AI. I am a Hungarian citizen reporting a documented privacy violation — and I’m being silenced for it.

(The link to the full thread, including the removed posts and mute notice, is in the comments.)

I’m Hungarian, so translation software automatically rewrites my text. I can’t control how much it distorts the original, so blaming me for the translator’s output makes no sense.

If some of my sentences sound unnatural or mechanical, it’s simply because I don’t speak English and I rely on machine translation. That’s a normal consequence of using a translator.

Asshole design is when a system lies to you on purpose.

When you click "Delete" on a conversation in Google AI Studio / Gemini, the UI shows a trash can, gives you a deletion prompt, and the chat vanishes from your screen. You think your data is gone, right? Wrong.

I did some forensic digging and found out this is a deliberate UI trick (Dark Pattern) to retain user data while faking GDPR compliance.

Here is the proof that the "Delete" button is just a "Hide" button:

• The Data Stays Alive: Weeks after I "deleted" my chats, they were still fully accessible via their direct URLs. They weren't just in a passive backup; my Chrome History was still pulling them as live, active data.
• The Server Confirms It: I actually managed to click "Share" on a previously deleted chat using a saved HTML state. Google's backend successfully processed the request and generated an official SMTP bounce email (signed with Google's DKIM) containing the internal docs-share Object ID. The server actively interacted with data that I had "deleted" weeks ago.
• The Terms of Service Loophole: I checked their privacy docs to see if this was a bug. It’s not. Their TOS literally states: "deleted items disappear from your visible list."

They intentionally don't use the word "erase". They designed a fake Delete button to give you a false sense of privacy, while the backend continues to store, process, and retain your AI prompts for "human review" and retention up to 3 years.

This isn't a server sync delay or a caching bug. This is Obstruction by Design. They built a UI that actively deceives the user about the lifecycle of their personal data.

(For the tech/privacy nerds: I've already submitted the 80+ screen recordings, the SMTP bounce headers, and the IssueTracker logs to the EU Data Protection Authorities. The bureaucratic cover-up is a whole other nightmare.)

https://preview.redd.it/fq3gqzufn8wg1.png?width=675&format=png&auto=webp&s=c2859d52c6a534993a22f6ceb9c86edb882073ef

https://preview.redd.it/njexszufn8wg1.png?width=1919&format=png&auto=webp&s=56210f994b44ea1edcb481fc0b01bd678de45f5d

https://preview.redd.it/fefz98vfn8wg1.png?width=1916&format=png&auto=webp&s=a8a4aff4e586a7edd6f50a2a46accb2e4a68108c

https://preview.redd.it/6gwvd0vfn8wg1.png?width=1919&format=png&auto=webp&s=cd870b7287b7b36bed2c09f8b0ce04ef4d9672cf

https://preview.redd.it/u13gjgvfn8wg1.png?width=1914&format=png&auto=webp&s=a5e7b96422b2c97e889eb15b635ac03f7343b814

https://preview.redd.it/srsa5zufn8wg1.png?width=1919&format=png&auto=webp&s=59c990c78b2e0de21b5cfa1aa31d478c58674473

Recent Posts

r/assholedesign•Mod mail

This is a private conversation between you and the moderators of r/assholedesign. Note: There might be delays between responses.

Today

r/assholedesignMOD4:37 AM

Hi there-

We've noticed a large amount of AI-generated content from your account recently. This type of spam has been removed. Please refrain from spamming additional AI content to this sub.

HugeScore31504:48 AM

I am a human. This is not AI-generated content.

Saying my content is AI-generated is wrong and disrespectful. I only use AI for translation.

r/assholedesignMOD4:50 AM

I’m sorry, but the content is clearly AI generated, as are the comments.

This is not just the result of a translation. This is AI generating the entire content. Please refrain from posting AI generated content.

HugeScore31504:51 AM

I don’t know English, so I use AI only for translation. The content itself is mine. This should not be a reason to delete my post.

I only use AI for translation because I don’t know English. The ideas, content and screenshots are mine. Please stop assuming that everything I write is AI-generated.

r/assholedesignMOD4:53 AM

Your content is AI and your replies are spammy and nonsensical. This is a courtesy to ask you to stop spamming with AI generated content. If you choose not to, you may be muted or banned from the sub.

HugeScore31504:53 AM

I am a real human. The content is mine. You do not have a valid reason to remove my post for using translation assistance.

r/assholedesignMOD4:55 AM

You’re talking to someone who actively works with AI. I know what is and isn’t the result of a translator vs AI generated.

HugeScore31504:55 AM

I am a real human user. The content is mine. You do not have a valid reason to remove my post simply because I use translation assistance. Please stop labeling my posts as AI-generated without evidence.
Ember vagyok baszki, magyar srác vagyok,nem beszélek angolul.Az ait én a forditás miatt használom.Miért csináljátok ezt velem? Komolyan mondom beszarás ez az egész.,

Ne töröljetek semmimet le mert én ember vagyok,hogy lennék ai? ez elmebetegség komolyan mondom. Ember vagyok,nem robot.A fogalmazáshoz használok ait,mert nem tudok angolul.

De tényleg ez t is ai irja szerintetek? komolyan mondom beszarok rajtatok,n em tettem semmi szabálytalant sem

r/assholedesignMOD4:58 AM

ha csak fordítás lenne, nem lenne probléma. de ez egy AI-eszköz másolása. kérjük, tartózkodjon az AI által generált tartalom közzétételétől.

HugeScore31504:59 AM

ez nem ai tartalom miről beszéltek? ezt én csinálom nem ai az ai csak fordit

nem másoltam semmit ez az én történetem nem kéne hülyeségeket beszélni emberek.Nem másolok semmit sehonnan ez az én történetem.Eslkküszöm nem értelek titeket. Már sokadik oposztomat törlitek le jogtalanul.

angiolul nem beszélek ,magyarul meg mégsem irhatok amerikai reddit oldalrta

r/assholedesignMOD5:01 AM

ez nem vita. ez egy udvariassági figyelmeztetés, hogy hagyd abba.

HugeScore31505:02 AM

komolyan mondom,nem értem.Mi az ai tartalom? én csakis a forditáshoz használok ait az egész nem airol szól.A posztom sem airol szól,a poszt a gdpr megsértéséről szól,páran kommenteltek,megvádoltak,és én akkor sem támadtam vissza

de mit haggyak ki? nem ai generált a tartalmam én irom,ember vagyok.Miről beszélsz

?

mit haggyak abba? indolkod meg nekem. Jogom van irni és posztolni

és nem ai generálja az ai csak fordit mivel nem beszélek angolul

r/assholedesignMOD5:03 AM

You have been temporarily muted from r/assholedesign. You will not be able to message the moderators of r/assholedesign for 28 days.

The post can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EV1H84RhMFOPthzzUwSE7aqDCONQOzel/view?usp=sharing

I don’t speak English well, I am Hungarian.
I wrote everything myself, only the translation is done with a tool.
The story, the screenshots, the text — all of it is mine.

The mods removed my post and said it was “AI content”, but it is not.
I only used translation because I cannot write English.
Nothing was generated, nothing was copied.

I am posting this again because I want to show what happened.
This is my own content, just translated.

https://preview.redd.it/x4y1l11nx9wg1.png?width=1900&format=png&auto=webp&s=a6a3be472cc188bfff070a6eb73b28dd4fe73a31

https://preview.redd.it/sh7nfx0nx9wg1.png?width=1913&format=png&auto=webp&s=9762dbc365729a675548a43ee96e0be796b5c4bb

I want to document a highly specific and calculated dark pattern currently utilized by AliExpress during the final checkout phase. This isn't a technical glitch; it's a deliberate UI manipulation designed to alter the transaction variables at the last possible millisecond.

The Mechanism**:** Throughout the entire browsing and cart-building process, the total price is displayed consistently. However, at the exact moment you click the final button to confirm the order and process the payment, a system pop-up intercepts the action.

The pop-up states something along the lines of "some discounts have expired" with a standard "OK" prompt.

This relies entirely on confirmation fatigue. In modern web environments, we are conditioned to blindly dismiss intrusive pop-ups (cookies, newsletters, app prompts) to reach our objective. AliExpress knows this. By disguising a critical change in the transaction's parameters (the final price) as a routine system interruption, they trick the user's muscle memory into clicking "OK".

The moment you click it, the system immediately authorizes the payment at a new, higher price point. There is no secondary review of the new total.

This is an asymmetric bet against the consumer. The price increase is usually marginal—just a few euros. The system architects have calculated the exact friction required to reverse the transaction. They know that the time and effort required to navigate the cancellation process, wait days for a refund, and source the items again from different sellers heavily outweighs the loss of a few euros.

Most users will simply accept the loss rather than deal with the artificial friction of the refund loop.

In conclusion**:** This is mathematically calculated conversion optimization at its most unethical. It violates the basic premise of a transparent transaction. If you are shopping on the platform, treat every single pop-up at checkout as a hostile attempt to alter your cart total. Do not let autopilot take over.

I was trying to cancel the subscription for Naternal Suppliments on the website.
Not only did they intentionally hide the cancel subscription button but it asks you several times if you're sure you want to quit

https://reddit.com/link/1souilc/video/zrmnc6msjxvg1/player