All inactive accounts on Google’s services, which include Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar, YouTube, and Google Photos, will soon be deleted, according to the company. The business announced that it would start deleting the accounts in December 2023.
The business defines inactive accounts as those that have not been signed into in the last two years. Google’s VP of Product Management, Ruth Kricheli, made the announcement in a blog post and explained that the move was required to protect other accounts on the platforms because dormant accounts are vulnerable to hacking.
She continued by saying that even while Google has made investments in tools and technology to safeguard its customers from security risks like spam, phishing scams, and account hijacking, if an account is inactive for a long time, it is more likely to be hacked. This, according to Kricheli, is because forgotten or unattended accounts frequently utilize outdated or frequently used passwords that may have been cracked or for which two-factor authentication has not been enabled.
Observing that hacked accounts can be used for everything from identity theft to a distribution channel for undesirable or even harmful content, like spam, Said Kricheli:
“To reduce this risk, we are updating our inactivity policy for Google Accounts to 2 years across our products. Starting later this year, if a Google Account has not been used or signed into for at least 2 years, we may delete the account and its contents – including content within Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar), YouTube and Google Photos.
“The policy only applies to personal Google Accounts and will not affect accounts for organizations like schools or businesses. 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.
“While the policy takes effect today, it will not immediately impact users with inactive accounts — the earliest we will begin deleting accounts is December 2023. We will take a phased approach, starting with accounts that were created and never used again.”
Google would send many reminders to both the account email address and the recovery email (if one has been provided) in the months preceding the deletion of an account, she continued.
How to keep your account active
Google claims that signing in at least once every two years is the easiest approach to keep a Google Account active. Your account will not be erased if you recently logged into your Google Account or any of our other services. Google noted the following as expected actions:
- Reading or sending an email
- Using Google Drive
- Watching a YouTube video
- Downloading an app on the Google Play Store
- Using Google Search
- Using Sign in with Google to sign into a third-party app or service.
Your account won’t be harmed if you already have a subscription set up through your Google Account, such as to Google One, a news source, or an app. Google stated it also takes this account activity into account.
