At first glance, the launch of Gmail’s new ephemeral messaging feature known as “Confidential Mode,” which is included in a batch of user interface updates to the service, may cause a fair amount of apprehension among e-discovery and information governance managers.

All emails sent using the confidential mode, for instance, are erased after a designated time set by the user. Until they are erased, they are stored directly on Google’s servers instead of on a proprietary company-owned server. And even if a Gmail user sends an email under confidential mode to a recipient who is using a different email client, the recipient can only access that email via a website link that still connects to Google’s servers.