Anyone with a Gmail account needs to be aware of a major update that's just been announced by Google. The US technology company has just confirmed that it is making a major change to its terms that could leave some email users without an account.
From December this year, Google says it may start deleting Gmail, Google Photos and YouTube accounts for good! That sounds pretty terrifying but there is a simple way to make sure your accounts stay firmly online.
Just use them on a regular basis and you'll be fine. The new rules will only affect those who haven't touched their emails or logged into their Photos for two years.
Once the deadline is reached, Google will then take a look and decided whether or not to delete the accounts and everything that is stored within them.
The Californian firm says it is taking the steps to reduce security threats such as spam, phishing scams and account hijacking.
"People want the products and services they use online to be safe and secure," said Google's Ruth Kricheli in a post on the firm's blog.
"If an account hasn’t been used for an extended period of time, it is more likely to be compromised. This is because 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."
So, to reduce the risks Google now says that it updating its inactivity policy for Google Accounts to 2 years across its products.
"Starting later this year, if a Google Account has not been used or signed into for at least 2 years, we may delete the account and its contents – including content within Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Calendar), YouTube and Google Photos," Kricheli confirmed.
As we mentioned earlier, if you are a regular user you'll be fine but if you have a second account you may have forgotten about, and you want to keep it, then make sure you log in and use it or you may lose it.
Google says the policy only applies to personal Google Accounts and users will be alerted before deletion takes place so you should get plenty of notice before things are gone for good.
News of this change comes days after Google revealed an incredible upgrade that's coming to Gmail in the coming months that will actually write whole messages for you.
Called Smart Reply, this function can see exactly what emails have been sent to you and craft the perfect response without you bashing away on the keyboard.
