Recall when last you logged in to your Google account or Gmail inbox? Google has commenced warning users that it will delete millions of Gmail accounts in December as part of a major update to its services.
If you’ve not been using your Gmail account for a while, there’s a chance that your account may be deleted, starting from December 1, for inactivity.
The tech giant says accounts that haven’t been used for a certain extended period of time are more likely to be compromised, or at-risk.
To combat the risk, inactive accounts or accounts haven’t been used for at least two years, may be deleted.
This include users’ Gmail, Google Drive, Google Photo and YouTube accounts.
“Google products reserve the right to delete your data when your account has not been used within that product for a 2-year period,” the company said.
Inactive accounts are less likely to have two-step verification set up and may use old or re-used passwords.
This change to its dormancy policy will not apply to school or business accounts, only those with personal accounts.
The company says it will start with accounts that had never been used since they were created.
Users will receive several notifications to both their Gmail account and recovery email address before their account is deleted.
How to Reactivate Your Inactive Google Account
“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 Account or any of our services recently, your account is considered active and will not be deleted.”
If you’ve checked your email, watched a YouTube video or downloaded an app in the Google Play Store, your account is not at-risk for deletion.
To read Google’s complete inactive account policy, click here.
