A have a number of G-mail accounts I used for various things but it appears (outside of 3 of them) I have been locked out of all of them. Now it says it can’t prove it is me or it asks for a phone number.
Is this a recent change? Did they put a limit on G-mail accounts you can have?
I am not 100% certain on this but I believe as of 2022, they require all new accounts to be verified via SMS so you need to be able to receive a text code. I think this also counts for old accounts that have not been used in several months or years. I had 5 or 6 accounts with Google but only have 2 now since this change. I don’t want to give Google my number. lol
If you are just getting the default “Google can’t prove this account belongs to you” or whatever it says, then you will need to contact them about the issue. They will likely request information to start the process such as the last known password when you started the account, your name on the account, e-mail recovery (if it is set up), and possibly a number to link to the account.
As far as I know, all new accounts need a phone number but if you sign up through the app, you have the option to use a recovery e-mail address instead.
They are cracking down on bot accounts so if they believe you have a bot account, they will lock it and you will have to directly contact them. There is a chance no one will get back to you either so I wouldn’t hold my breath.
I moved away from g-mail a few years ago when they started changing all their policies on privacy. I still have one active account with them which I use for junk mail.
Ah, I see. So my only option would be to contact them for each one? I don’t think I can be bothered. lol
I will see if I can make a few new ones through the app, if not I will find a different option.
Yeah, I wouldn’t bother. Their support is very slow and even then, they might not be able to “prove” the accounts belong to you. It is annoying how they run things these days. I understand for security reasons but still. I see you made a thread asking for other options. I hope you find something better suited for you!
I had this issue. It was sorted in about 72 hours after I e-mailed them. I needed to provide a lot of information, including a phone number. I think this is just standard now for them as I didn’t have a number on my account previously.