Google Warning: Millions of Gmail Accounts About to be ‘Deleted’

Multinational technology giant Google has started warning users that it will delete millions of Gmail accounts next month as part of a major update to the platform.

This removal process will affect all personal Google accounts that have been inactive for at least two years. Emails, documents, spreadsheets, calendar appointments, photos and videos will be permanently deleted.

Earlier this policy was introduced this year but it will be implemented from December 2023.

“We are updating the Google Account deactivation policy for all our products with a two-year period,” Ruth Critchelli, Google’s vice president of product management, wrote in a blog post in May.

“This update aligns our policy on account retention and deletion with industry standards and also limits the amount of time Google retains unused personal information.”

The move aims to protect active Google users from security threats such as phishing and account hijacking.

Old accounts that haven’t been used in years are especially vulnerable to hackers because hackers can use the same passwords that have been compromised in other security breaches. These passwords are easily available on the dark web.

Google says any account at risk of deletion will receive ‘multiple notifications’ before any action is taken.

Accounts to which notifications will be sent include recovery email addresses.

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The technology giant has already started sending out emails to those affected, asking users to ‘protect their private information and prevent any unauthorized access to their account, even if you use our services. Not using anymore.’

Losing access to a Gmail account can also potentially prevent people from using other online platforms and services that are linked to that email address, even if those platforms are not associated with Google.

To keep the account active and avoid deletion, Google users are advised to open or send an email, use Google Drive, download the app on the Google Play Store or log in to the account and do a Google search. take

Any account that posted the video to YouTube will also not be affected, regardless of when it was last activated.