At the moment, Google has no plans to remove YouTube accounts and videos.
Google has updated its policy for old accounts that have not been used for a long time. In 2020, Google introduced a rule to remove content stored in an inactive account. Now it has been announced that from the end of 2023, Google will begin deleting unused accounts themselves.
Google has introduced a rule to delete content and account “if the Google account has not been used or signed in for at least 2 years.”
In addition to making your Gmail email address unavailable, Gmail messages, Google Calendar (Google Calendar) events, Drive files, Docs (Documents) and other Workspace files, as well as Google Photos backups (Google Photos) will also be lost.
Google soon begin deleting old accounts of Gmail, Photos and other services
At the moment, Google has no plans to remove YouTube accounts and videos. Removal of obsolete accounts is planned to begin in stages in December 2023. The first to be destroyed are “accounts that were “never used after they were created.” The company says it will “implement this slowly and carefully.” The company explained:
Before deleting an account, we will send a series of notices months in advance to both the account email address and the recovery email address (if provided).
The new policy only applies to regular free Google accounts. Corporate or educational accounts will not be affected.
In order for Google to consider an account as active, you need to log in periodically and perform the following basic steps:
- Reading or sending email (for example, viewing an inactivity alert)
- Using Google Drive
- Watching YouTube videos
- Downloading the App from the Google Play Store
- Using Google Search
- Using Google Sign In to Sign in to a Third Party App or Service
- Using an Android device with this account
