It’s been some years that I am not able to log in to my Google account, because I stopped using it for a very long time any Google product, and now even providing my password, they say they can not know if it is me or now…
They send me to this support page which seems like I have lost my account with all the data and stuff I had from when I was younger…
I don’t think this is normal or ethic to do (I know Google has been never ethic), but this makes me so angry because I never wanted to lose all that data…
Do they basically know every people networks? And if you don’t let them know… you lose access to Google? … 😠
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I still have about 3-4 old google accounts I can’t log into anymore since 2015 or so. They started asking questions like “when did you create your account”, “what was your first password” and shit like that. Luckily I had that information, even with that they wouldn’t let me in for some reason. Luckily the accounts weren’t private and just full of spam, so they were of no value.
Leave google when you can.
I have an alternate Google Account for You Tube when they started requiring that. I must have gotten my name before there was strict guidelines. It is still active. I am the proud owner of the Account FuckYouGoogle.
It’s an honor meeting you tips hat
Is there a miss Fuckyougoogle?
This literally made me do a full switch to proton. I can’t login with my password without accepting it on my phone (that don’t have google services so I had to use from my girlfriend). And if I use my another e-mail to validate the 2-factor it always mandate me to change my password like my account was compromised. You literally can’t have a google account without an android apparently (this is probably not true for everyone cause apple exists but IDK, in my case I had no other way).
I lost my 2 factor for an old account. I have the password and backup codes. I can log in with SMS code, but can’t change anything because it wants the 2 factor code. There’s a log in with a different method button, but it also asks for the 2 factor code.
A lot of services (e.g. reddit) outright refuse to reset anything if you lose your 2FA. Phone breaks and your backup codes got wet? Oops, there goes your account.
Yeah right, I also started to use ProtonMail + Non-Googled OS on my Android (but with MicroG), and it’s been already 5 years without Google.
I just want to keep gmail in order to get access to all accounts I forgot to migrate, I had a lot of old games and stuff like that that I would migrate as I remember. If was not that I already had blown this account.
I deleted and took out all my Google data back around many years ago. Never looked back. OP and dozens of testimonies here and on internet in general continue to reinforce my conclusion that I pulled out at the correct time.
Google knows just about every WiFi device and internet connected machine by IP address. Few years ago they announced that they track every possible WiFi SSID and you have to append
_nomapas suffix to SSID to opt out of this mass surveillance. This is also why they started back with Android 6.0 Marshmallow binding together WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS permissions, in the name of making it convenient for us with more “precise” GPS location detection. (GPS perms on Android have precise and coarse options with no WiFi/BT utilisation to assist GPS.)Well, in a way, they do provide accurate geolocalisation for indoor environments based on wifi networks. And it is right that having internet/bluethooth access also (more or less) reveals your location; but that doesn’t make it ethical.
Technically using multiple network devices increases accuracy of geolocation info fetching, but the side effect is clearly intentionally and unethically misused by Google and US govt criminal agencies. If this were some sort of global community entity with an open, transparent database (like OSM) fetching this data (think instead of Google’s we had an open community UnifiedNLP component for OS), it would be relatively somewhat okay, but its clear what is happening, and these things should be kept talked about IRL without fear or care.
You are thinking of https://opencellid.org and of Mozilla location services. You can contribute to them with the TowerCollector app.
UnifiedNLP is just one interface that can use many “backends” or “location services”, like the Mozilla one, an offline list, or even google itself via microG.
Its just the most relatable idea I commented, because dedicated privacy readers and Android modders usually have come across picking Mozilla’s backend over Google on their rooted phones. microg is used often as well.
Oh right, I forgot about the
_nomap… but I don’t want to name my SSID like that… it’s pretty ugly name. Or maybe I can make it shorter with the nameplease_nomap, that would look a nice name. hahahaSSIDs are not like Reddit usernames since some people know they are yours, otherwise a lot of creativity could be shown.
BTW, I was wrong. It is
_nomap_optout, so even uglier. Source: my own SSID is named like that since google let us know that.Wow I didn’t knew that. What about hided ssid? Can google still know about that? Do I need to put ssid nomap optout? Thanks
Undiscoverable SSID should not be scannable by Google. Format is how I put in monospace, it being appended to your SSID as suffix.
SSIDs are not like Reddit usernames
I never used Reddit… xD
And I always called my Wi-Fi networks as the same from years ago, this way my family always can get in without asking me the password. Now the permanent name will be something to make it cool with that ugly suffix… 🤮
EDIT:
_nomapis Google and_optoutfor Microsoft? WTF → https://superuser.com/questions/1005235/wi-fi-opt-out-microsoft-googleYeah… WTF indeed. Its not talked about a whole lot, and only the most active privacy folks (like me, shameless) took steps like that early.
Is is too late to add _nomap _output to my SSID these days?
Probably, if you have lent out your WiFi graciously to any Apple/Google device. But you could deny mapping now, better late than never.
I just hid and renamed the ssid for now. I’ve read somewhere that google now only maps ssids when you enable location awareness on your phone. This is from 2022 -> https://www.howtogeek.com/788837/your-wi-fi-info-is-in-google-and-microsofts-databases-should-you-care/
So if they don’t let you sign-in with not enough information, they’re wrong because, and if they would let anyone with your password signing in, they’d be bad too?
Right…
Don’t forget that OP expected Google to hold onto their data forever, without paying them, despite not logging in “for a very long time”.
For all the hills to die on about Google, this is a pretty strange one to choose.
Yeah. I have no issues recognizing errors/shortcomings of services I like, but I’m trying to avoid creating fake issues with those I don’t like.
I don’t like Apple, but if you’re looking at the best company when it comes to rounded corners, look no further!
OP expected Google to hold onto their data forever, without paying them
Well no shit - you’re saying it like that’s some crazy idea, when it’s exactly what Google has conditioned consumers to expect.
They know my phone number from years ago when I used it, they could send me a verification code too… There are many ways to make this secure, but they don’t even care, I read many people having stupid issues resulting in a “locked account” and losing it all…
Did YOU enable MFA using that phone number when you were logged in years ago?
Nope, I just remember getting “google code verifications”… But I’m sure they know my phone number… xD And I want to point that they have no excuses to contact me for verifications, a simple text message would work.
I don’t think this is normal or ethic to do (I know Google has been never ethic), but this makes me so angry because I never wanted to lose all that data…
It has absolutely nothing to do with ethics. Do you even remotely have a clue how many hundreds of thousands of acct hacks are attempted and succeed/fail every day?
You claim you never wanted to lose the data, yet haven’t got into that acct for years…clearly it’s nothing important.
Google sucks from a privacy standpoint, but has amazing security, and they need to, Googles level of paranoia with accts is literally the only way to keep accts safe, people have way too much in them. Even going back years before it was cranked up like it is now, the options to have backup email addresses, phone numbers, 2FA, all other ways to verify yourself in the event of an acct lockout.
nothing to do with ethics
They’re asking to access to my local network is.
You claim you never wanted to lose the data, yet haven’t got into that acct for years…clearly it’s nothing important.
I have all my photos and stuff from where I was young, I don’t access every day but yeah I didn’t want to lose them all. You want to make a list of everything I lost and expose here a big list of personal stuff?
Google sucks from a privacy standpoint, but has amazing security, and they need to, Googles level of paranoia with accts is literally the only way to keep accts safe, people have way too much in them. Even going back years before it was cranked up like it is now, the options to have backup email addresses, phone numbers, 2FA, all other ways to verify yourself in the event of an acct lockout.
It’s not about security, they’re just blocking me even they know where I am from, and my IPs are from the same zone, and they could message me a verification code on my phone as that never changed.
You are pretty wrong on the whole text you wrote.
Your first mistake was Google itself
But I was just a kid… xD
They get em early don’t they over there at the big G.
PSA: please remember that when Google is talking about security - they mean financial security of their stockholders.
Yeah, I recently lost my 14-year-old Facebook account with no option to download my data while suspended. The suspension even was a bug following me setting my account to hacked by accident and releasing it (which took 2 days) again… Half a day after I set it to ‘not hacked’ anymore, changing my email snd password, it flew in suspension, to which I was given 1 attempt at 'Disagree’ing, which I did, but it’s been slmosty 4 months now: the page still says to check back often for a result, but when I log out it tells me I haven’t 'disagree’d yet (though it will not allow me to redo it)… Lost 14 years of journalling data and uploaded creations in a second… 😕
Best of all: There’s absolutely no decent support system where you can go if their “automation” fails… They expect the automation and a basic faq suffices for whatever problem you have, and have no way to complain about it if it doesn’t…
I don’t think Google has a decent support system anymore either… They should fine big monopolistic companies if they can’t even provide a decent support system for exceptional cases, imho…
They expect the automation and a basic faq suffices for whatever problem you have
No they don’t, and they know it doesn’t, they just don’t give a fuck. They’re worth a bajillion dollars and anything else is just chatter to them.
Yeah right, I wish I could have some human contact to tell them “I am me”… did you find or tried to find any human support email or contact? I wonder if Google has any too…
I’ve actually recovered my account (I was reported, and suspended, for using a false name) and along with the identification they requested I submitted a picture of a hand-written letter explaining why I used this name.
my account was reinstated.
Do you have the email address? (if they asked you that via email address) Maybe I can send them some message to unblock me, if not it’s okay.
I have already read many people have been locked too, I will need lawyers to sue that company to force leaking my personal data to be able to use my account again, and that’s not easy…
it was a few years ago now, I’m sorry - if I still hand it it’ll be deeply buried in my inbox
No, there’s a US phonenumber, “tollfree” (as if that matters when I’m in Europe, it’ll still cost me a lot either way), and it connects you to a multiple choice voice recording with no option to speak to a real person, and most support related stuff apparently just tells you to go click the “help link at the bottom of the facebookpage”. First of all, suspended I have little to no options anymore as the site tries it’s best to lock you out completely, even preventing you from seeing stuff you can see fine when logged out, and secondly, if I use another account for it: There is no bottom of the facebookpage, it’s infinite scroll… 😅 Anyway, I did use the “report a problem” a bunch of times, but that apparently had no effect either… I also tried dm’ing Facebook on Twitter as some say they sometimes answer there, but apparently I’m not part of that sometimes and got no reaction there either. 🤷♂️
I have an FB account from 2010 that I didn’t sign into for 2-3 years. I tried and they wanted me to send them my driver’s license… uh, no. Sillier thing is I have a linked instagram account I have signed into every week or two with no problems.
About five years ago, I had my Facebook name set to be my first name three times, first middle and last. Facebook thought it was fake, rightfully so, so they demanded that I send photo ID to verify myself. At that time, I didn’t have valid ID. didn’t have valid ID for about seven years at that time, I sure as fuck wasn’t going to get one just to use Facebook. I decided to just delete the account, then I deleted all of my other Facebook accounts, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. they’re getting way too greedy
In many European countries, you have legal recourse here. They’re not allowed to make arbitrary decisions like this in most places here. You could sue them to get your account re-instated.
I’m from Europe, but sueing costs money… 😕
There are consumer unions with hired lawyers. In Spain there’s Facua and OCU (but the 2d one is governmental, I think)
Same problem. No other ways to verify, just my FULLY CORRECT PASSWORD, so Google has decided I’ll never get to access my old account again.
I posted about it on the Google forum and was told by a self important community person that it is my fault for not logging back into that account to set up backups.
Happy to switch off Gmail now, but it won’t get my old emails with bygone friends and family back.
My fault for expecting my password to get me into my account. Fuck Google man.
Shit scared of this myself, that’s why I have an email client even though I was pretty happy with the web browser. At least there’s local copies. Already lost my hotmail account in a similar manner. Suddenly my password was considered incorrect, no means of recovery because I wasn’t keen on giving them personal info. I guess this somewhat proved their point but it all seems a bit fucked. My password was fine, had been using it since 1998.
I hate this stuff. People can’t manage passwords and get hacked all the time, so they implement all of these extra checks that get in the way when I’m on travel. It’s an enormous pain.
Yeah, GitHub spammed my mailbox asking me to add 2FA but Google no… they are asking for my Wi-Fi network. 😞 And I’m not sure if I can even provide it to them now that I can’t log in again… I will keep trying it next month…
Good luck to you. I’ve seen this happen a few times and I’ve never heard of anyone who successfully recovered an account with this type of lockout situation.
Fuck…
Passwords are no longer passwords?
Two-factor authentication is required. In most cases you can use a TOTP authenticator app. This is the most privacy-friendly way to do 2FA to my knowledge, as it requires no information at all to be shared by you.
Of course, it’s not unknown for Google to randomly lock accounts, but there’s not really much you can do about that anyway.
you can use a TOTP authenticator app. This is the most privacy-friendly way to do 2FA to my knowledge, as it requires no information at all to be shared by you.
In theory. In practice lots of services will require you to tell them your phone number in order to unlock the ability of using TOTP for 2FA.
It’s completely bogus because of course there’s no relation between phone number and a TOTP app, but people who aren’t tech savvy will buy it because they associate the one with the other because it’s all happening “on the phone” so they think “they must need to confirm my phone in order to use 2FA on my phone, makes sense”.
Off the top of my head, Google and Twitch (Amazon) do that right now. LinkedIn and Facebook used to do it but have relented after being broken into over and over again, which compromised lots of accounts without 2FA.
I’ve had Google temporarily lock my account even though:
- I knew my username and password.
- I knew the answer to my secret questions.
- I had the 2FA code from the authenticator app.
- I had access to my email and could confirm it’s me using links they sent in mails.
- They had my phone number and could send a text with a confirmation code.
- They could pop up a confirmation notification right on the phone.
- They could probably have asked me to fart in B flat and they’d detect it, they’re so far up my ass.
None of that matters. Their stupid system will automatically decide to lock you out for whatever reason and that’s it.
I’m glad I reduced the use of that email address down to nothing and that I moved out my calendar and events and I’m no longer using Google Pay.
They could pop up a confirmation notification right on the phone.
Which, btw, does not work without running Google (tracking) Services on your phone.
Gotta love that punishment for keeping your private information, well private.
Yeah, I didn’t know but seems this happened to many people… it’s a shame I didn’t know about this… not going to use Google for anything right now… I lost all my purchases too…
Yep.
I have an old Google account from like 2012 that was a spam trap account I made back when you could easily sign up anonymously for gmail over Tor. It will not let me log into it anymore unless I connect a phone number to it. It hems and haws about how this is “for your protection” but really it’s pretty simple that your activity has no value to Google unless they can tie it to your identity and connect it to other activity and then bundle that and sell it to advertisers. (And fuck you Google, I’m not protecting that account from anyone except you… hackers are WELCOME to know I types a throwaway email into some online medical insurance shit…)
In fact, if you don’t want companies to collect your data, you’re more and more locked out of any app, service or platform that asks for a verified email. I’ve encountered things recently that won’t accept protonmail emails (and invite you to use OAuth to sign in with Google, Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter, fuck that noise).
I actually imagine that OAuth locked to a major provider FOR EVERYTHING is the future those guys would all like to see.
Yep. Twitch (Amazon) has started requiring people to add their phone number to be able to message each other and plan to lock out access to more and more features if you don’t.
They also stopped accepting one-time use CC numbers because, obviously, they’re a great privacy feature offered by some banks.
Happens to me all the time when I’m on VPN.
Also, stop using the conjunction “so” to start sentences.
So, what happens if you don’t stop using so to start sentences?
stop using the conjunction “so” to start sentences
Makes sense, I edited the post to remove that, I think now looks better yeah, thanks.
Happens to me all the time when I’m on VPN.
That sentence fragment is missing a subject.
The subject is implicit.
If you mean that communicating an idea using language should take priority over strict adherence to rules of grammar, and that language is a living, changing thing continuously redefined by its usage, I agree.
No, I usually aspire to be nice.
That non-sequitur is a perfect example of impeccable grammar that fails to adequately communicate an idea.
I am so tired of doing all their fucking captchas because I run a vpn. It’s so obnoxious.
You don’t need to solve any captcha with this https://github.com/dessant/buster, and it works very well for me.
So, let me get this straight… The Capcha is trying to verify that you’re a human, and you’re using a bot to prove that you’re, in fact, not a bot? This is friggin genius!
Lol yeah right? So silly…
If anything the bot is far more successful than I am solving captchas manually
I would categorize this as a complete and utter failure of the capcha concept and company.
Appreciate it!
OAuth to sign
Hahaha, right now I couldn’t use that (with social media accounts)… for now I have always seen an option to log in with “magic link” at least, which is super cool, no passwords.
Yeah, I recently tried to sign up for a Playstation account and they wouldn’t let me use Proton. Thankfully I could use simplelogin but really shouldnt’ve needed to.
I’m new to Simple Login, though I’ve used throwaway addresses like mytrashmail (with no link to my real email of course) for a while. What I wonder is, if Sony are fussy about Proton, why do simplelogin domains not trip them up? That would seem even dodgier if you thought only services like Google’s were trustworthy.
Pretty sure its a domain blacklist, not whitelist. Not sure how they blocked Proton without blocking SimpleLogin, because anyone who does any research into Proton will hear about it.
Folks, get regular Google Takeouts (you can schedule them) and back them up using something like Vorta + borgbase.com
Is there a tutorial for this ?
Probably if you Google it or search on the Vorta website.
The short version, after some research, is that Borg is better suited for Linux users as it involves ssh key based authentication to the backup server hosted on borgbase.com.
Whereas restic is maybe simpler to setup if you’re on Windows.
The good news is that, whichever “protocol” you use, borgase.com provides cheap cloud storage supporting both, for as little as 24€/year for 250 GB. It’s the plan I have and it fits comfortably my ~130GB of Google Photos + all the other Gapps exports (~10GB gmail + 15GB gdocs being the biggest offenders after photos).
You can read a lot about this by just Googling Borg vs restic.
Both Borg and restic are just the backend apps, you’ll want a frontend as well, be it a CLI or a separate GUI application. Since I use Borg on Linux I paired it with Vorta, simple GUI and has scheduled backups and alerts you if they haven’t run in a while, plus you can mount your backups to local paths to inspect their contents and extract data selectively.
Dunno if the same is possible with restic, but there are also GUIs for that, for sure.
Enjoy!
I mean, is there a tutorial on how Borg gets the Takeout files ? Do I have to do that manually or is there an automated process to hand over the take out files for me ?
Not that I’m aware of, I’m doing the Takeout part by myself.
You can however request the Takeout to be recurring, e.g. once every N months. Or you can just request a one time takeout.
I did the latter just to know how much space it takes, but I’m going for the recurring ones from now on. Google will send you a mail once the Takeout archive(s) is/are ready for download.
I’ll try automate the whole process, if successful, I’ll post about it.
That’s very interesting, thanks for sharing!
