Your Gmail account may soon be deleted unless you follow new advice from Google

01 August 2023 , 07:41

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Your Gmail account may soon be deleted unless you follow new advice from Google

If you haven't checked your Google accounts, including Gmail or Google Photos, in a while then it might be worth logging in as soon as possible. Google first began warning users that certain accounts will soon be deleted back in May and with the deadline now looming the tech giant is once again urging users to use it or lose it.

As spotted by the team at Bleeping Computer, Google sent out a batch of messages at the weekend warning its millions of users about the upcoming changes and how it could see inactive accounts get sent to the history books.

"We are updating the inactivity period for a Google Account to two years across all of our products and services," the message reads.

"This change starts rolling today and will apply to any Google Account that's been inactive, meaning it has not been signed into or used within a two-year period. An inactive account and any content in it will be eligible for deletion from December 1, 2023."

This warning means some could face their emails and photos being removed for good in just a matter of months. Luckily, it seems those affected will get plenty of notice before the delta button is tapped by the team at Google.

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Google Gmail warning (GETTY • GOOGLE)

The firm says: "If your account is considered inactive, we will send several reminder emails to both you and your recovery emails (if any have been provided) before we take any action or delete any account content. These reminder emails will go out at least 8 months before any action is taken on your account."

It's pretty easy to stop accounts being deleted with Google saying users simply need to read or send an email, use Google Drive, watch a YouTube clip, share a photo or sign into the account and perform some web searches.

This should be enough to keep things active.

Google says it is bringing in measures to help keep accounts secure and stop any unauthorised access if an account is no longer being used.

"People want the products and services they use online to be safe and secure," said Google's Ruth Kricheli in a post on the firm's blog.

"If an account hasn’t been used for an extended period of time, it is more likely to be compromised. This is because forgotten or unattended accounts often rely on old or re-used passwords that may have been compromised, haven't had two factor authentication set up, and receive fewer security checks by the user."

Dave Snelling