In December of this year, the company will start deleting inactive accounts, with two years or more of disuse, but before that, users will receive a notification by email
Starting in December of this year, Google Accounts that have been inactive for more than two years will be able to be deleted. The policy will only apply to personal Google Accounts and will not affect accounts for organizations, such as schools or companies, or accounts with a Google One subscription.
Deletion of inactive accounts includes, in addition to emails and Google profile, content from Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar), YouTube and Google Photos.
Prior to this update, various Google products had different timelines and means for declaring inactive accounts. The measure aims to increase internet security. Abandoned accounts are vulnerable and, once compromised, can be used by malicious actors for a variety of actions, from identity theft to dissemination of spam.
This is a critical step to ensure that user accounts and credentials remain secure throughout the digital environment. But, Google will take a careful approach and the process will not be instantaneous and universal. While the policy goes into effect today (16th), it will not immediately affect users with an inactive account. The deletion will only start in December 2023.
A phased approach will be taken, starting with accounts that were created and never used again. Prior to deleting an account, multiple notifications will be sent over the months prior to deletion to both the account email address and the recovery email (if provided).
How to keep an account active
To avoid deletion, you must log in at least once every two years. If someone has signed in to your Google Account or any of the services recently, your account is considered active and will not be deleted. As services, the following actions are considered:
- Read or send an email;
- Use Google Drive;
- Watch a YouTube video;
- Download an app from the Google Play Store;
- Use Google Search;
- Use Sign In with Google to sign in to a third-party application or service.
Google Photos has its own deletion policy and needs to be accessed independently. Users should pay attention to company notices and log in if necessary so as not to lose archived data.
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