Have you not logged in to your Google Account in at least two years? Do this quickly or you will lose your data.

Owners of a Google account that they only use sporadically should be careful. Starting today, December 1, the search giant will begin automatically deleting accounts that have been inactive for two years or longer.

Does Google automatically delete all accounts in one go? Fortunately, the search giant is taking a gradual approach. First and foremost are the accounts that were created and then never used again. Accounts that were still active, but not in the last two years, will then be systematically deleted.

More safety

To use your account, all you need to do is log in. If your account is linked to your Android phone, you’re in good hands. You’ll also be safe if you use your account to read email, watch YouTube videos, or occasionally log in somewhere.

According to Google, when you log into a service anywhere, your data is preserved everywhere. The exception to this is Google Photos. You must specifically log in, otherwise your photos will be lost. The search giant says it has the right to remove it after two years of inactivity.

The main reason Google is doing this, besides publishing email addresses, is to improve security. Many old, unused accounts have likely been hacked because passwords were repeated far more in the past than today. They also don’t have 2FA or MFA set up.

Important tip: Always set an additional email address as the recovery address for your Google account. This way, you will receive a notification when Google wants to delete your account and can take action in a timely manner.