Google has already confirmed that it is to start deleting, although purging might be a better term, certain personal Google accounts from December 1.
This purge will include pretty much all the content you can think of: Gmail messages, Google Photos libraries, Google Calendar appointments, and Google Docs archives are all impacted.
If news of this move to delete inactive Google accounts comes as a complete surprise to you, the fault cannot be laid at Google’s door.
Back in July, Google sent emails warning that these account deletions would start in December. Those emails stated that any account that is considered to be inactive will receive “several reminder emails” before any action is taken.
Now you may think you’ve spotted a flaw in the logic here, as an email to an account that isn’t currently active won’t be read, but Google has that covered. Notification emails will also be sent to any recovery email address on record.
The first accounts to be targeted, in December, will be those that were created but never actually used again since.
With more than 1.8 billion Gmail users, rising to 2 billion as far as Google Photos users are concerned, will your account be among the unconfirmed number to be affected?
The good news is that, statistically speaking, it’s unlikely. That’s because this purge, undertaken for security reasons according to Google, only applies to inactive personal accounts.
More specifically, users who have not signed into their Google accounts for at least two years.
If you’ve read or sent an email using Gmail, stored something in Google Drive, downloaded an app from the Google Play Store, added a photo to Google Photos, or even performed a Google search while logged into your Google account, your precious content is safe.
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