Warning: Google may delete your Android backups without warning



For all those who use Google Drive for backing up their data, there is an important news for them. Google will Delete Your Android Backups After 60 Days of Inactivity. So, if your phone remains inactive for 60 days, Google will automatically delete your data.
You never fully appreciate the value of a backup until you need it. When you consider how much we all use our phones these days, our handsets contain a wealth of data -- and it make sense to back it up.
If you're using an Android smartphone, you can use an automated backup feature to safeguard the data from your phone by backing it up to Google Drive. With your data stashed in the cloud, you might think all is well -- but Google could delete your backups without giving you any warning.

Google will Delete Your Android Backups After 60 Days of Inactivity

Google Drive will display the date on which your data will expire below the backup. The important thing to note here is that, once the data will be deleted, there is no way to recover it. To only way to out this problem, is keep using your Android device time to time to check Google Drive.
If you forget to check your Google Drive, then Google will remove your data without notifying you.

The 3 big takeaways for TechRepublic readers

  1. Google will delete Android backups if the device hasn't been used in a certain amount of time, as the company has noted in their policy.
  2. According to Reddit user Tanglebrook, there also is no option available to use paid Google Drive storage to maintain older backups either.
  3. Apple also deletes old backups, and users should check their backup dates if they plan on not using their phone for a while.
What happens when your backup expires
Your backup will remain as long as you use your device. If you don't use your device for 2 weeks, you may see an expiration date below your backup.
Example: "Expires in 54 days."
So if you head away on vacation for a couple of weeks, leaving your phone at home, by the time you return from your time away, Google has already started the countdown to deleting your data. The chances are that you will use your phone on your return, but there are certainly circumstances in which this may not be the case (you might switch to another device for a while, for instance) -- and then your data will be lost forever.
You have been warned.

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