[Tip] Prevent Your Google Account from Automatic Deletion

Original article posted on May 20, 2023:

Starting December 2023, Google will start deleting inactive Google Accounts (Gmail, etc) which have not been used for at least 2 years. In this article, we’ll discuss reason behind this automatic account purge decision and methods to prevent and safeguard your Google account from this automatic deletion policy.

Google will Delete All Unused or Inactive Accounts Automatically

Google made an official announcement about the updated policy for inactive account deletion. According to the announcement, all Google accounts which have not been used or signed into for at least 2 years, will be considered as inactive and Google may delete the whole account and its contents.

Here is a short excerpt taken from the official announcement:

Reason Behind Inactive Google Account Deletion

The reason is security! According to Google, if an account hasn’t been used for an extended period of time, it might be compromised. Most of the times forgotten or unattended accounts often rely on old or re-used passwords that may have been compromised, haven’t had two factor authentication set up, and receive fewer security checks by the user. Google analysis shows abandoned accounts are at least 10x less likely than active accounts to have 2-step-verification set up. Meaning, these accounts are often vulnerable, and once an account is compromised, it can be used for anything from identity theft to a vector for unwanted or even malicious content, like spam.

That’s why Google has decided to delete inactive accounts automatically to improve security.

How will a Google Account be Considered as Inactive?

You might be wondering how will Google decide whether an account is active or inactive. Google has published some guidelines regarding inactive accounts:

An inactive Google Account is an account that has not been used within a 2-year period. In other words, if a Google Account has not been signed into for at least 2 years, it’ll be considered as inactive.

Not All Inactive Google Accounts will be Deleted, There are Some Exceptions

Some Google accounts will not be deleted even if they are inactive. The new account purge policy only applies to personal Google Accounts, and will not affect accounts for organizations like schools or businesses.

A Google Account is considered active even if it has not been used within a 2-year period if one or more of the following conditions apply:

• If you have an existing subscription set up through your Google Account, for example to Google One, a news publication or an app, Google will consider this account activity and your account will not be impacted.
• Google do not have plans to delete accounts with YouTube videos at this time.
• Your Google Account contains a gift card with a monetary balance.
• Your Google Account manages an active minor account with Family Link.
• Your Google Account has been used to purchase a digital item, for example, a book or movie.

The new policy will not immediately impact users with an inactive account – the earliest Google will begin deleting accounts is December 2023.

Google will take a phased approach, starting with accounts that were created and never used again.

Before deleting an account, Google will send multiple notifications over the months leading up to deletion, to both the account email address and the recovery email (if one has been provided).

How to Prevent Your Google Account from Deletion

If you are worried about your Google account deletion, you can sign-into your Google Account at least once every 2 years. If you have signed into your Google Account or any Google service recently, your account is considered active and will not be deleted.

Activity might include these types of actions you take when you sign in or while you’re signed in to your Google Account:

• Reading or sending an email
• Using Google Drive
• Watching a YouTube video
• Sharing a photo
• Downloading an app on the Google Play Store
• Using Google Search
• Using Sign in with Google to sign in to a third-party app or service

December 1, 2023 is the date when Google will start removing inactive Accounts in phases due to this policy.

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