• Source:JND
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Tech giant Google recently sent out emails to users across the globe informing them that the company is revising the inactivity period of Google accounts to two years across its product line. The changes will apply to accounts that have not been used or signed in even once in the past two years.

These accounts will be eligible for deletion starting December 1, 2023, Google added in the email. The changes will also apply to the content associated with these accounts. Users who have used their email IDs in the last two years or signed in recently will remain unaffected by the change.

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"While the changes go into effect today, the earliest we would enforce any account deletion would be December 2023," the company said. Once the account is marked inactive, Google will send a series of reminders via email to the primary email ID and the recovery email before an action is initiated from the company's end.

"These reminder emails will go out at least 8 months before any action is taken on your account," Google said in the email communication. After the account is deleted, the Gmail address will not be usable for a new account.

How to avoid Gmail account deletion?

The tech giant recommends the user sign in to their Google account at least once in two years. Once the user meets the requirement, the account will no longer be eligible for deletion. Besides this, users can read and send emails, use Google Drive, watch YouTube videos, share photos, download apps, use Google Search and sign in with Google to log in to third-party apps to keep the account active.

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However, some exceptions to account deletion highlighted in the email include Google accounts with "YouTube channels, videos and comments; an account with a gift card having a monetary balance; or an account with a published application on Play Store." If a user wishes to delete their account, they can download the data via Google Takeout or decide what happens to this data after account deletion using Inactive Account Manager.