Google Will Delete Millions Of Inactive Accounts: Do This To Avoid Deletion Of Your Google, Gmail Account

Google has important information for millions of its users across the globe as per its latest blog.

It appears that the internet giant is updating its inactive account policies. 

Google said that it plans to delete accounts that have remained inactive for two or more years, as part of this update.

The company informed the decision in a blog post, saying this is part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen security measures and reduce risks for its vast user base.

Earlier, Google had said it would remove content stored in an inactive account, but not delete the account itself in 2020. 

But this latest announcement would be a change in that policy.

Why Would This Happen?

Answering the same, in the blog post, Google said, “Our internal analysis shows abandoned accounts are at least 10x less likely than active accounts to have 2-step- verification set up. Meaning, these accounts are often vulnerable, and once an account is compromised, it can be used for anything from identity theft to a vector for  unwanted or even malicious content, like spam.”

What All Will Get Affected Besides the Google Account?

To be specific, this update will affect Google accounts as it will delete the account and its contents.

Besides this Google will delete the contents of these accounts, including Gmail content within Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, calendar), YouTube and Google Photos. 

Is This Update Applicable To All Google Accounts?

First of all, this new policy is only applicable to personal Google accounts.

 So, it will not affect accounts for organizations like schools and businesses, according to Google.

How Would You Know If Your Account Got Deleted?

Explaining the same, Google said that it will take a phased approach, starting with Twitter making its first acquisition under Elon accounts that were created and never used again. 

Further adding, “Before Musk email address and the recovery email (if one has been

provided),” in the post.

When Will This Happen?

Although the policy takes effect from 16 May 2023, it will not immediately impact users with an inactive account.

The earliest Google will begin deleting accounts is by December 2023 that too in a phased manner starting with accounts that were created and never used again.

Also, the company will send multiple notifications over the months leading up to deletion, to both the account email address and the recovery email (if one has been provided), before deleting an account.

How To Keep Your Google Account Active?

If you are wondering about this, the simplest way to keep a Google Account active is to sign-in at least once every 2 years.

It can be simply implemented by 

1. Reading or sending an email
2. Using Google Drive
3. Watching a YouTube video
4. Downloading an app on the Google Play Store
5. Using Google Search
6. Using Sign in with Google to sign in to a third-party app or service

For further information visit blog.google.com.