Google Maps finally gets an iOS update complete with App Privacy labels

Google Maps (Image credit: iMore)

What you need to know

Google Maps has received a new update for iPhone and iPad for the first time in more than four months.
The new update also includes App Privacy labels .

Google has released an update to its iOS Google Maps app for the first time in more than four months. The update, which is said to have big fixes in tow, brings the release number up to version 5.65.

The last time Google updated the Google Maps app for iOS was on December 1, before Apple began requiring apps in the App Store to display App Privacy labels. It was thought that Google was trying to delay having to add labels to its apps but we've seen a number of its apps receive updates in recent weeks.

This one, however, seems less than exciting.

Thanks for using Google Maps! This release brings bug fixes that improve our product to help you discover new places and navigate to them.

The App Privacy labels are designed to make sure users know what kinds of data an app is collecting and what it will be used for, something Google is unlikely to want to advertise given the huge amounts of data it holds on us all via the use of Google Maps, Gmail, and all the other apps and services it offers.

You can download the updated Google Maps app from the App Store for free, now.

Google Maps is best used on larger iPhone like the iPhone 12 Pro Max which just so happens to also be the best iPhone for photographers thanks to that huge screen, too.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.

Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.