Tag: YouTube

Google’s Inactive Accounts Policy

Every day Google works hard to keep you and our private information safe and secure by preventing unauthorized access to your Google Account with their built-in security protections. And keeping you safe means having strong privacy practices across Google products that minimize how long Google store our personal files and any data associated with them. Google wants to protect our private information and prevent any unauthorized access to our account even if we’re no longer using Google services.

Therefore, they are updating the inactivity period for a Google Account to two years across all Google products and services. This change starts rolling out today and will apply to any Google Account that’s been inactive, meaning it has not been signed into or used within a two-year period. An inactive account and any content in it will be eligible for deletion from December 1, 2023.

What this means for you

These changes do not impact you unless you have been inactive in your Google Account for two years or have not used your account to sign in to any Google service for over two years.While the changes go into effect today, the earliest they would enforce any account deletion would be December 2023.If your account is considered inactive, Google will send several reminder emails to both you and your recovery emails (if any have been provided) before they take any action or delete any account content. These reminder emails will go out at least 8 months before any action is taken on your account.After a Google Account is deleted, the Gmail address for the deleted account cannot be used again when creating a new Google Account.

How to keep your account active?

The simplest way to keep a Google Account active is to sign in to the account at least once every two years. If you have signed in to your Google Account recently in the past two years, your account is considered active and will not be deleted.

Other ways to keep your account active include:

Reading or sending an emailUsing Google DriveWatching a YouTube videoSharing a photoDownloading an appUsing Google SearchUsing Sign in with Google to sign in to a third-party app or service

There are some exceptions to this policy.

Examples include:

a Google Account with YouTube channels, videos or comments; an account that has a gift card with a monetary balance; or an account that has a published application, for example, one that hosts an app on the Google Play store.

Other exceptions to this policy are available here.

Google also offers tools to help manage your Google Account and provide options to back up your data, including the ability to download your data using Google Takeout, and allowing you to plan for what happens to your data if you’re inactive for a specific period of time with the Inactive Account Manager. So before an account is deleted, Google will send email notifications to the Google Account and its recovery email (if one has been provided). You should verify that your recovery email is up to date.

Breaking: Government Blocks 16 You Tube Channels

Utilizing the emergency powers under the IT Rules, 2021, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, 2021, vide two separate orders on 22.04.2022, issued directions for blocking of sixteen (16) YouTube based news channels and one (1) Facebook account.

The blocked social media accounts include six Pakistan based and ten India based YouTube news channels, having a cumulative viewership of over 68 crore. It was observed that these channels were used to spread fake news over social media on matters related to national security, India’s foreign relations, communal harmony in the country, and public order. None of the digital news publishers had furnished information to the Ministry as required under rule 18 of the IT Rules, 2021.

Nature of Content

The content published by some of the India based YouTube channels referred to a community as terrorists, and incited hatred among the members of various religious communities. Such content was found to have the potential to create communal disharmony, and disturb public order.

Multiple India based YouTube channels were observed to publish unverified news and videos having the potential to create panic among various sections of the society. Examples include false claims related to announcement of a pan-India lockdown due to COVID-19 thereby threatening the migrant workers, and fabricated claims alleging threats to certain religious communities, etc. Such content was observed to be detrimental to public order in the country.

YouTube channels based in Pakistan were found to have been used in a coordinated manner to post fake news about India on various subjects such as the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir, and India’s foreign relations in the light of situation in Ukraine, etc. The content of these channels was observed to be completely false, and sensitive from the perspective of national security, sovereignty and integrity of India, and India’s friendly relations with foreign States.

On 23rd April 2022, the Ministry had also advised private TV news channels against making false claims and using scandalous headlines. Government of India remains committed to ensure a safe and secure information environment in India across print, television and online media.

You Tube is Updating Its Terms Of Service. Review Now

Message from You Tube

On 5 January 2022, we’re updating our Terms of Service (“Terms“) to help clarify and make it easier to understand what to expect as you use the service. These changes won’t affect the way you use YouTube. You can review a summary of the changes and the updated Terms here.

At a glance, this update covers:

  • More clarity on what to expect: We’re providing more transparency about how we develop, improve and update our service, including more details about why we make changes and updates and the advanced notice that we provide to you.
  • General updates for improved readability: While our Terms remain a legal document, we’ve done our best to make them easier to understand. This includes reorganising some sections (such as Account Suspension and Termination) and rewording others (such as Changing this Agreement).
  • Inclusion of the Community Guidelines strikes process: Your use of YouTube has always been subject to the Community Guidelines and its strikes process, but we’re now explicitly including the Community Guidelines strikes information in the Terms to increase transparency. There are no changes to how Community Guidelines strikes operate, or when a channel or content might receive a strike.

Google is also required to inform you under Rule 5 of the Indian Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code Rules, 2021) Rules, 2021 that if you are a publisher of news or current affairs content, you are required to furnish the details of your accounts on YouTube to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.

Please make sure that you read these updates and remember that the Terms and Google’s Privacy Policy apply to your use of YouTube. Violation of these agreements may result in warnings or further action including loss of access or termination of all or part of your account.

By continuing to use YouTube after this date, you are agreeing to the updated Terms. Note: If you allow your child to use YouTube Kids or manage your child’s use of YouTube through Family Link, take a moment to talk to them about these changes.

YouTube allows creators to change their channel name without changing entire Google account

YouTube has come up with a new update that will allow its users to change their channel name and picture without an impact on their Google Account. Until now, YouTube creators had to change their name and icon for their entire Google account soo their name on YouTube would be the same name they send emails from in Gmail. Now, the streamer giant is allowing its creators to update their channel name and picture inside YouTube, and those changes will only impact their profile on YouTube. However, this also comes with a drawback to the creators who have a verification badge as they will lose their check mark if they change their name. The creators have to apply to receive the badge again.