Inactive Accounts

In an effort to minimize safety threats such as cyberattacks, Alphabet Inc.’s child company Google announced on Tuesday that it will deactivate accounts that had been inactive for two years beginning in December.

According to the business, accounts, and materials within Google Workspace, such as Gmail, Drive, Docs, and Meet, along with Calendar, YouTube as well as Google Photos, may be deleted if they have not been utilized or registered for a minimum of two years.

The policy modification solely affects individual Google Accounts; it does not affect accounts used by corporations or institutions like schools.

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Google stated in 2020 that while it would erase the account itself, it was going to delete any content kept in a deactivated account.

Before deleting inactive accounts initiated on Tuesday, Google will be sending repeated reminders to the account’s email address including recovery mail.

“The simplest way to keep a Google Account active is to sign in at least once every 2 years,” the company’s policy says. “If you have signed into your Google Account or any of our services recently, your account is considered active and will not be deleted.”

Source: nbcsandiego.com

Your account won’t be deleted if you’ve opened up your email, viewed a YouTube video, or installed an app from the Google Play Store, according to the firm.

Just individual Google Accounts are subjected to these rules and regulations, accounts used by companies and organizations like schools are not affected. This change restricts the duration of time Google keeps your inactive personal information and matches the policy with standard practices for account termination and preservation.

A Google Account can be kept active by just logging in no less than once every two years. If you have lately signed into your Google account and have utilized any of its various additional features, your Google account is considered active and won’t be deleted.

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The steps that you can take when you log in or when logged into your Google Account may be considered activity include,

Read or send emails, use Google Drive, stream YouTube videos, install apps from the Google Play Store, use Google Search, and If you use a service or services from a third party and sign in using Google.

Your account will remain unaffected if you already have a membership set up via your Google Account, such as to Google One, a media outlet, or an app. They also take into consideration this account activity.