US giant Google made an important announcement this week that millions of its users around the world must keep in mind to avoid losing their accounts due to inactivity.
Google indicated through a note on its official blog that it will start deleting accounts that have been inactive for at least two years in order to avoid security risks.
The company noted that despite technology and tools to protect its users from security threats such as spam, scams and account hijacking, “if an account has not been used for a long period of time, it is more likely to be compromised ”
The company argued, “This is because forgotten or neglected accounts often rely on old or reused passwords that can be compromised, haven’t set up two-factor authentication, and have less than user access.” Get a security check.”
Google noted that abandoned accounts are at least 10 times less likely than active accounts to set up two-step verification, for example.
“That is, these accounts are often vulnerable, and once an account is compromised, it can be used for anything from identity theft to vectors of unwanted or malicious content, such as spam.” , accurate.
Under this scenario, the US giant noted that, to mitigate this risk, its deactivation policy for Google accounts is being updated for two years across all its products.
“Starting later this year, if a Google Account hasn’t been used or signed in for at least 2 years, we may delete the account and its content, including Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar) and Google. Photos,” he said.
The company said the policy only applies to personal Google accounts and will not affect accounts from organizations such as schools or businesses.
This update aligns our policy on account retention and deletion with industry standards, and also limits the length of time Google can retain your unused personal information.
The first inactive accounts will begin to expire next December.
