Google will delete millions of Gmail accounts from December 1: How to avoid it?

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Starting December 1, Google plans to delete millions of Gmail accounts that have been inactive for two years or more. This action could result in the loss of valuable data for many users. Here’s how to avoid this situation.

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Google’s draconian measures

In an effort to clean up its user base, Google announced that it will begin deleting Gmail and Drive accounts that have been inactive for two years or more. This massive purge will begin on December 1st. Affected users risk losing all their information stored on these platforms, including Drive, Photos, YouTube, Calendar and Google Docs.

This measure will only apply to personal accounts. Accounts related to work, educational institutions and other organizations will not be affected by this deletion policy.

How to backup your Google account?

To avoid deletion of your account, you must reactivate your account. To do this, simply log in and perform at least one action on the account. This may include:

Send or read an email
Upload a file to Google Drive
Watch a video on YouTube
Search on Google
Download an app

Any action is valid to notify Google that your account is not abandoned.

How do you know if your Gmail account is in danger?

Google has implemented two methods to notify users when their accounts are inactive. You will receive an email notification on the inactive Google account and also on the recovery email. If you forget your password, you can recover it by following a verification process and respecting Gmail’s security conditions.

It is therefore crucial to act before December 1st to avoid irreparable deletion of your account data.

What are the potential impacts?

This measure could have significant consequences for those who have neglected their accounts for some time. Losing valuable data can be devastating, especially if that data is not backed up elsewhere. For example, photos stored on Google Photos or documents on Google Drive could be lost forever.

On the other hand, this action could help clean up Google’s user base and free up server space. This could potentially improve the performance of Google services for those who actively use them.

Prevention is key

To avoid data loss, it is recommended to regularly access your accounts and take any action. It could be as simple as sending an email or uploading a file to Google Drive. Additionally, it is also recommended to backup your important data elsewhere, in case you cannot access your account for any reason.

In short, Google’s announcement is an important reminder that we need to take care of our digital accounts, just like we do our physical possessions.