Google will begin deleting accounts that have been inactive starting next month, according to the company’s timeline announced in May. The search giant is set to permanently delete accounts that have not been used within a certain period of time, including any data associated with the account such as emails, documents and files, and photos that have been backed up. According to the company, accounts scheduled for deletion will be notified in advance by Google before the account is deleted.
Earlier this year, Google announced that it would consider accounts that haven’t been used for two years as “inactive.” The company’s inactive account policy defines an active account as one where users perform the following actions: search Google while signed in, send and read emails, save and open Google Drive files, watch YouTube videos while they are signed in, sharing Google Photos and downloading Play Store apps.
According to Google, all content and data may be deleted when an account is deemed inactive. The company’s policy on inactive accounts reiterates its previous announcement: deleting inactive accounts will begin on December 1.
Google accounts can contain a lot of personal information that has been shared over the years and may be deleted. These include synced contacts, photos, Chrome bookmarks, emails, maps and location history, files on Google Drive, instant messages, Google Pay data, Google Play content, and YouTube and YouTube Music data.
However, there are certain exceptions to the company’s inactive account policy: Accounts used to “purchase a Google app, product, service, or subscription that is current or ongoing” will not be marked for deletion. If you have a gift card balance in your Google Account, or if you’ve published a game or app with active subscriptions, or if you’re monitoring a child’s account with Family Link, or if you’ve purchased digital items like a movie or email purchased -book.
Google says it will notify users in advance by sending emails to affected users’ accounts and to all available recovery email addresses. If you receive an email from Google stating that your account is considered inactive, you can take certain actions to prevent your data from being deleted. These include logging into your account and using the Google search engine or watching a few YouTube videos.