If you have you been worrying about who will read your personal mails or conversations after your death, you can finally heave a sigh of relief as Google's new service gives you the option of a 'Digital Will'.
The California-based search giant has launched a new feature called Inactive Account Manager, which gives its users the power to decide what to do with their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings in the event of their death.
The Inactive Account Manager will enable users to direct Google about what to do with their plans, unexpressed desires, thoughts and ideas after they are gone.
The service can be used to pass on online data from Google Drive, Gmail, YouTube, or social network Google+ to an individual, or delete it in case the accounts are dormant for a long time. It also gives users the option to 'burn' their accounts deleting all virtual materials from all Google properties, including Google voice extensions.
In a message on an account settings page, Google, now, gives users the option of sharing their virtual belongings with a close friend or family member, or have their account deleted.
The set-up page reads: “What should happen to your photos, emails and documents when you stop using your account? Google puts you in control.
“You might want your data to be shared with a trusted friend or family member, or you might want your account to be deleted entirely. There are many situations that might prevent you from accessing or using your Google account. Whatever the reason, we give you the option of deciding what happens to your data.
“Using Inactive Account Manager, you can decide if and when your account is treated as inactive, what happens with your data and who is notified.”
The search giant lets people specify a time period after which it starts sending the account holder reminders about the "timeout" period.
The service will also enable users to select a time period the account must remain inactive before sending out the alert. After the time period lapses, 10 individuals will recieve information on how to handle the account.
Users will have the option of choosing 3, 6, 9, or 12 months as the timeout period and Google will send a reminder to a secondary email address one month before the period is set to expire. Following the lapse of this period, the trusted contacts will receive an email explaining how to access the data an individual has left them.
How to set up Inactive Account Manager
The service can be activated by clicking on a link on the Accounts page under the Account Management section.
After reading the introduction to the service, click on the blue Setup button. On the setup page, you'll find four sections:
In the "Alert me" section, you must give a mobile number to which Google will send a reminder text message one month before your account is deemed inactive. You can also provide an alternate e-mail address (that is, one other than the Gmail address associated with your account).
The next field, "Timeout period," lets you set the period of inactivity that must occur before, basically, Google thinks you're dead. You can set this for 3, 6, 9, or 12 months.
In the next section, "Notify contacts and share data," you can name up to 10 contacts, who will be notified when your account has remained inactive for the specified period of time. You can also check the box for "Share my data with this contact" and choose which Google products you'd like to share data from.
Contacts you choose to share with will be able (after your timeout period is up) to download your data for three months. For each contact, you will need to also provide a phone number that Google can use to send a verification code the contact will need to access your data. Also in this section, you can set an auto-response for all incoming e-mails to your Gmail address once it becomes inactive.
If you would prefer to erase your online data instead of sharing it with anyone, then the service also provides you a fourth section, "Optionally delete account." Here you can click on the toggle switch to "Delete my account." At last, click the blue 'Enable' button to complete the setup process.
The California-based search giant has launched a new feature called Inactive Account Manager, which gives its users the power to decide what to do with their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings in the event of their death.
The Inactive Account Manager will enable users to direct Google about what to do with their plans, unexpressed desires, thoughts and ideas after they are gone.
The service can be used to pass on online data from Google Drive, Gmail, YouTube, or social network Google+ to an individual, or delete it in case the accounts are dormant for a long time. It also gives users the option to 'burn' their accounts deleting all virtual materials from all Google properties, including Google voice extensions.
In a message on an account settings page, Google, now, gives users the option of sharing their virtual belongings with a close friend or family member, or have their account deleted.
The set-up page reads: “What should happen to your photos, emails and documents when you stop using your account? Google puts you in control.
“You might want your data to be shared with a trusted friend or family member, or you might want your account to be deleted entirely. There are many situations that might prevent you from accessing or using your Google account. Whatever the reason, we give you the option of deciding what happens to your data.
“Using Inactive Account Manager, you can decide if and when your account is treated as inactive, what happens with your data and who is notified.”
The search giant lets people specify a time period after which it starts sending the account holder reminders about the "timeout" period.
The service will also enable users to select a time period the account must remain inactive before sending out the alert. After the time period lapses, 10 individuals will recieve information on how to handle the account.
Users will have the option of choosing 3, 6, 9, or 12 months as the timeout period and Google will send a reminder to a secondary email address one month before the period is set to expire. Following the lapse of this period, the trusted contacts will receive an email explaining how to access the data an individual has left them.
How to set up Inactive Account Manager
The service can be activated by clicking on a link on the Accounts page under the Account Management section.
After reading the introduction to the service, click on the blue Setup button. On the setup page, you'll find four sections:
In the "Alert me" section, you must give a mobile number to which Google will send a reminder text message one month before your account is deemed inactive. You can also provide an alternate e-mail address (that is, one other than the Gmail address associated with your account).
The next field, "Timeout period," lets you set the period of inactivity that must occur before, basically, Google thinks you're dead. You can set this for 3, 6, 9, or 12 months.
In the next section, "Notify contacts and share data," you can name up to 10 contacts, who will be notified when your account has remained inactive for the specified period of time. You can also check the box for "Share my data with this contact" and choose which Google products you'd like to share data from.
Contacts you choose to share with will be able (after your timeout period is up) to download your data for three months. For each contact, you will need to also provide a phone number that Google can use to send a verification code the contact will need to access your data. Also in this section, you can set an auto-response for all incoming e-mails to your Gmail address once it becomes inactive.
If you would prefer to erase your online data instead of sharing it with anyone, then the service also provides you a fourth section, "Optionally delete account." Here you can click on the toggle switch to "Delete my account." At last, click the blue 'Enable' button to complete the setup process.
