Google’s decision to delete millions of inactive Gmail accounts could erase millions of photos and other irretrievable memories, users have warned. The purge, which comes into effect next month and will hit any account that has not been used for more than two years, could impact parents who have set up email addresses for young children in order to share and mark milestones with them. It could also inadvertently affect people who continue to manage the online accounts of deceased relatives. Googleannounced the policy in a blog post earlier this year, claiming that the move aims to protect active users from security threats like phishing scams and account hijacking. The mass closure will also free up significant amounts of server space, which will also save the US tech giant money and resources. Google warned that the new policy applied to personal Google accounts, which includes content within Google Photos and Google Workspace tools like Docs, Drive, Gmail, Meet and Calendar. Nicholas Worley, founder and chief executive of digital archiving platform Inalife, urged people to take action immediately in order to risk losing access to the accounts. “If you have a Google account set up for your kids and have been emailing them, or if you manage the account of a deceased loved one... Login, save or backup any important memories and stories,” he wrote on LinkedIn. Mr Worley told The Independent that he began recording memories when he learnt he was having his first child in 2019. “I have friends and now Inalife users who had set up emails for their kids and hadn’t known about the deletion issue before being told,” he said. The Independent has reached out to Google for further information about whether any impacted accounts will be retrievable once the purge has taken place, and the exact number of accounts potentially impacted. In its May blog post, Google’s vice president of product management Ruth Kricheli said that users would be able to keep their account active by reading or sending an email, using Google Drive, watching a YouTube video while logged in, downloading an app on the Google Play Store, or using Google Search. “[The] update helps us continue our advancements in account security, and helps reinforce our commitment to keep your private information private,” she wrote. “This update aligns our policy with industry standards around retention and account deletion and also limits the amount of time Google retains your unused personal information.” Google has already begun sending notifications to both the main email addresses and recovery emails of any accounts at risk of deletion. Read More Google is about to ditch passwords forever Google issues three-week warning to Gmail account holders One of the world’s most hyped tech products just launched – and made a big mistake ‘Is AI dangerous?’ UK’s most Googled questions about artificial intelligence

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2023 has been a tough year for the Red Sox. Heading into the offseason, there's going to be roster changes, which leaves some players on thin ice.The Boston Red Sox, by many standards, have had a rather decent season. They're 6 games above .500 and ranked higher than the rival Yankees....

The identity of the woman behind the ‘not real’ plane rant that delayed a flight for hours has been officially revealed. The bizarre incident unfolded on 2 July when a female passenger onboard an American Airlines flight was filmed freaking out over another passenger that was seated close to her. In the subsequent viral video, the woman, who had left her seat and walked towards the front of the plane, turned back and pointed to the passenger, shouting, “that mother f**ker back there is not real”. An investigation among people online began as they tried to confirm the identity of the woman, with two names flying around. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Now, it has been revealed that one of the names was correct, as the woman has been identified as Tiffany Gomas, a marketing executive from Texas. It is believed the incident started when Gomas had an argument with relatives she was travelling with over accusations they stole her AirPods headphones. According to The New York Post, which viewed documents linked to the incident, the 38-year-old refused to leave the plane despite suggesting in her rant that she wanted to get off. “The female then started claiming the aircraft was not safe and did not want the aircraft to leave due to her believing it would not make it to its destination,” the 2 July complaint read. “Due to the statements the flight attendants felt the aircraft needed to be rescreened. [The airline manager] explained that the passenger was denied boarding and they wanted her escorted to the public side.” All of the passengers on the plane were forced to get off the aircraft and be rescreened through security. The plane also underwent another screen. Gomas attempted to reboard the plane but was issued with a “verbal criminal trespass notice” and was escorted away to the public side of the airport. Despite this, she tried multiple times to come back through security to reach the boarding area. Police eventually located Gomas waiting for an Uber outside the terminal. She refused to sign a criminal trespass notice, refused to show police her ID and was never formally arrested. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Google seems scared. The tech giant really wants people to use it as their default