Google is cleaning up on Gmail, remember to sign in 📧

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Google has recently updated its policy on the use of accounts created on its platform. If you haven’t used your Google account in 2 years, it will be deleted.

Unused accounts are a security risk ⚠️

According to an internal Google analysis, abandoned accounts are 10 times less likely than active accounts to have 2-step authentication in place. The absence of this security measure very often means the account is vulnerable. And once an account is compromised, it can be used for impersonation or spamming.

In order to reduce this risk, Google has decided to update its policies regarding inactive accounts. Starting at the end of this year, if a Google account has not been used or logged into for at least two years, Google reserves the right to delete the account and its contents, including the contents of the Google workspace (Gmail, Documents, Drive, Meet, Calendar) and Google Photos.

The deletion process, which will take effect in December of this year, will be done in a progressive way, starting with accounts that have never been used. Before an account is deleted, Google will send several notifications to the email address associated with the account as well as to the recovery address, if provided. Once deleted, deleted email addresses cannot be reused.

How to keep your account active ?🆙

The easiest way to keep your Google account active is to sign in at least once every 2 years. If you have done this recently, then don’t panic. If you are logged into your Google account, the following actions are considered activity and avoid account deletion:

• Read or send an email
• Use Google Drive
  Watch a YouTube video
• Download an application from the Google Play Store
• Use Google Search
• Use the Connect with Google feature to connect to a third-party application or service

In addition, if you have a current subscription, such as Google One or any application linked to your account, it will be considered active. Finally, accounts from which videos have been uploaded to YouTube will be spared.

If you have Google accounts that you haven’t used in a while, consider signing in to them or risk losing them forever.

Source : Google, The Verge