As we approach the end of 2023, we’re also getting closer to Google’s deadline to revive abandoned accounts before Google hits the big red delete button.
In May 2023, Ruth Kricheli, VP Product Management, said said that the company would begin closing unused accounts in December 2023, three weeks from now.
Deleting an account affects all Google accounts, including Gmail, Drive, Docs, Meet, Calendar, and Photos.
Google will delete unused accounts starting December 2023
Kricheli said this measure is aimed at curbing attacks and security threats, including “spam, phishing and account hijacking”. Dormant accounts are more susceptible to attacks than maintained accounts because the company regularly rolls out security updates such as two-factor authentication (2FA) to improve account protection.
The company’s own research shows that accounts that haven’t been used in a while are 10x less likely to have 2FA set up.
The mass purge will take place in phases, starting with accounts that were created but never reopened.
Google says it will send “multiple notifications over the months leading up to the removal” before taking drastic action.
To keep accounts open, Google only requires that you sign in at least once every two years to access the services. This may include: reading or sending an email; use of Google Drive; watch a YouTube video; downloading an app from the Google Play Store; use of Google Search; or use Sign in with Google to sign in to a third-party app or service.
Active subscriptions, such as Google One, news publications and apps, are also considered sufficient activity.
Kricheli added: “We have no plans at this time to remove accounts with YouTube videos.”
However, Google Photos users must log in specifically to that app or web portal to prevent the service from being removed.
While these measures may seem drastic, the reality is that most users typically log in more than once every two years, meaning the vast majority of abandoned accounts are actually abandoned.
With data centers under intense scrutiny for energy and natural resource use, cleaning up the servers is a step in the right direction for Google and the planet.