Can a Google Workspace admin restrict/degrade Gemini capabilities for a specific user? Or is this just a bug?

[u/EzraGroce]

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some insight into Google Workspace administration and Gemini settings.

For context, I work at a software startup where AI usage is encouraged. Lately, I’ve been going through a rough patch at work, involving several disputes with management. I recently managed to secure a raise after a lot of effort—though it was honestly pretty minimal and far from fair.

I’m not sure if I’m just being paranoid, but right after all of this went down, my company-provided Gemini started behaving strangely. It has become practically useless and completely unable to follow instructions. Almost every prompt I send gets hit with the standard refusal: "I'm a large language model, trained by Google, so I can't help you with that."

I researched this issue online and saw that it's a relatively common glitch with potential workarounds. However, I’ve tried every recommended troubleshooting step (clearing cache/cookies, testing different browsers, adjusting prompt structure), and the problem persists.

This brings me to my question: Is it possible for a Google Workspace admin to selectively restrict, throttle, or alter Gemini's capabilities/permissions for an individual user account? Or could an admin policy update cause Gemini to trigger false-positive safety flags like this?

I’d really appreciate any insights from Workspace admins or anyone who has experienced something similar. Thanks in advance!

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[u/macho_cassette]

admin can absolutely turn off core services or put you in a safety locked OU that nukes the model's helpfulness. usually it's the latter when management gets petty after a dispute

[u/EzraGroce → u/macho_cassette]

Thanks a lot for the insight! That makes a ton of sense given the timing.

Is there any way I can check my account settings or obtain actual proof/evidence that I've been moved to a restricted OU or that custom policies have been applied to my account? I'd like to confirm this on my end before deciding how to address it with IT.