Google made a big revision to its dormant account regulations a few weeks ago. Google said it will begin erasing accounts that have not been used or entered into for at least two years. According to reports, Google is now alerting users to this change so they may stop their accounts from being automatically deleted.
The goal of Google’s new policy is to prioritise user security and lessen the dangers connected with holding on to dormant accounts. Google stated in one of the blog entries that the new policy would go into effect on December 1, 2023. Starting eight months in advance, the corporation will send out warning emails to users whose accounts are at danger of deletion. It should be noted that the deletion will also affect any material kept in dormant accounts, including Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar, YouTube, and Google Photos.
“We’ll proceed in stages, beginning with accounts that were established but never utilised. We will send many alerts to both the account email address and the recovery email (if one has been supplied) in the months before we delete an account, according to Google.
Google's justification for removing dormant accounts
In order to increase security, Google intends to deactivate accounts that have not been used for two years. According to the business, abandoned accounts are at least 10 times more likely to lack two-factor authentication than active accounts, making them more susceptible to hackers.
Once a user’s account has been stolen, it can be exploited for everything from spamming to identity theft. According to Google, eliminating dormant accounts will aid in lowering the danger of these kinds of assaults. The reason for this, according to the official blog post, is that forgotten or unattended accounts frequently utilise outdated or frequently used passwords that may have been hacked, don’t have two-factor authentication set up, and receive less security checks from the user.
Notably, Google guarantees that the new policy will not affect accounts for organisations like corporations or schools and would only apply to personal Google Accounts. “This update aligns our policy with industry standards around retention and account deletion and also limits the amount of time Google retains your unused personal information,” the firm noted.
How to keep your Google account active
While Google will be sending out reminder emails to customers to reactivate their accounts, if you have a Google account that hasn’t been used in months, here’s how to save it from being deleted. First and foremost, log into the account you’ve been ignoring for around two years. Following that, below are some activities that will assist you in keeping your accounts active.
- Reading or sending an email
- Viewing a YouTube video
- Downloading an app from the Google Play Store
- Using Google Search
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