Google’s Gmail and Photos Deletion Policy: What You Need to Know

Recently, there has been growing concern about Google’s new policy on deleting inactive Gmail accounts. Users on support forums, including the Gmail subreddit, have raised questions about whether Google can delete inactive accounts. This interest follows a year-old warning to users about the risks of account deletion, particularly for those who, like one forum user, maintain multiple Gmail accounts for various purposes. Here’s a rundown of what you need to know to protect your accounts if they haven’t been accessed in a while.

New Google Policy on Deleting Inactive Gmail and Photo Accounts

Google’s recent policy shift targets inactive accounts, and many users may risk losing valuable data stored in services like Gmail, Google Photos, and Google Docs. Google’s policy changes, scheduled to start on December 1, 2024, specify that inactive personal accounts will be deleted. This includes not only the account itself but also any content stored within, such as emails, photos, and documents.

The initial round of notifications to account holders began nearly 18 months ago, targeting users with accounts that were created but remained unused. Google has since continued to notify affected users, gradually expanding the scope to include other accounts that are expected to meet the inactivity criteria in the future.

According to Google, an account is considered inactive if it has not been accessed for two years. As Google explains, “Google reserves the right to delete an inactive Google Account and its activity and data if you are inactive across Google for at least two years.” The company clarified that this policy applies solely to personal accounts, exempting business and educational accounts from the rule. Each Google product has specific definitions of what constitutes activity, impacting the extent to which data within an inactive account may be deleted.

To prevent an account from being classified as inactive, users must meet at least one of several activity criteria, which include:

– Reading or sending an email

– Using Google Drive

– Watching YouTube videos

– Sharing photos

– Downloading an app

– Using Google Search

– Signing into a third-party app via Google

These actions help verify that an account is still actively used, thereby safeguarding it from deletion.

Rationale Behind the Account Purge Policy

With around 2.5 billion active users, Gmail is frequently targeted by cybercriminals looking for ways to infiltrate accounts and spread phishing attacks. Google has implemented the new policy to counteract this risk, noting that dormant accounts are more vulnerable to security breaches. Ruth Kricheli, Google’s vice president of product management, said, “If an account hasn’t been used for an extended period of time, it is more likely to be compromised.” This risk factor, according to Kricheli, arises because inactive accounts are often neglected by users who may not perform regular security checks. As she explains, “Our internal analysis shows abandoned accounts are at least 10x less likely than active accounts to have 2-step verification set up.”

Even a forgotten account remains valuable to cybercriminals as they can exploit its contents or use it as a foothold for broader attacks. While such accounts might lack recent activity, they may still contain personal data that hackers could exploit. Therefore, Google has introduced this policy change as part of its broader efforts to mitigate potential security risks across its services.

Steps to Protect Your Gmail and Photos Content

Preventing account deletion is straightforward: simply logging into your Google account once every couple of years is enough. However, it’s recommended to do so more frequently—every three months, for instance—and to complete a Google security checkup during each login. This process ensures that your security settings remain up to date.

If you’ve forgotten the password to an inactive account, starting the Google account recovery process can help. By entering a known recovery email or phone number, Google will send a verification code to that contact, allowing you to regain access. Once you’re able to log in, you can proceed with password recovery steps if necessary.

It’s essential to note that activity is determined at the account level rather than by individual devices. Therefore, logging in on any device counts as activity for the account as a whole. Taking a few minutes to log in and check your account’s status could prevent it from being marked as inactive, avoiding the potential for deletion.

Manage Multiple Gmail Accounts Securely

It’s often beneficial to maintain more than one Gmail account, primarily to have a backup in case your main account becomes inaccessible. For added security, consider setting up email forwarding from your primary account to a secondary one, ensuring a copy of all messages is preserved elsewhere. By creating dedicated accounts for specific purposes, such as photo storage or document management, you can better organize your data and add an additional layer of protection.

Creating a new Gmail account is simple: sign out of your existing account, go to the Google Account sign-in page, and select “Create account.” When setting up new accounts, use a passkey wherever possible, preferably tied to a different device from your primary account, and enable two-factor authentication with a standalone code-generating app. This extra step can protect you if one device is compromised.

To streamline the management of multiple accounts, Google offers an easy switching feature. After clicking on your avatar in the top-right corner of any Google service, you can select “Add account” and follow the prompts to sign into additional accounts. Once added, you can switch between accounts seamlessly by selecting your avatar and choosing the desired account from the list. Google also allows for multiple sign-ins and passkeys for added security and quick access.

Using Google’s Security Checkup for Enhanced Protection

Google provides a free security checkup feature to help users strengthen their account security. This checkup assesses your account’s current security settings and recommends measures to improve them. While these suggestions are prioritized by importance, reviewing all recommendations can be beneficial to ensure comprehensive security.

Key checkup recommendations often include:

– Enabling Safe Browsing in Chrome

– Verifying forwarding rules

– Reviewing blocked email addresses

An unauthorized forwarding rule might indicate a potential account breach, so it’s wise to examine these settings closely. Similarly, checking your blocked list could reveal unusual entries meant to filter out security alerts. Taking the time to perform these checks, even on new accounts, can help prevent vulnerabilities from emerging in the first place.

Final Recommendations

As users increasingly rely on Google services for personal and professional storage, understanding and adhering to Google’s activity requirements has become essential. In a digital landscape where inactive accounts can be both a security risk and a potential loss of valuable data, Google’s new policy serves as a critical reminder to stay vigilant. The simple act of logging in regularly and performing security checks is key to ensuring that your accounts remain protected and active, safeguarding your data from unwanted deletion.

In a world where cybersecurity is paramount, these preventative measures, while potentially time-consuming, are necessary to protect against emerging threats.