Google Will Delete Your Backup If You Haven’t Used Your Android Phone in 60 Days
Android: If you have an Android device, you most likely have a backup of it stored in your Google Drive account. Unfortunately, as one user discovered , this backup could expire after 60 days if you leave your Android device untouched, even if you have more than enough storage space.
The potentially harmful data wiping policy completely erased Tanglebrook’s Redditor Android smartphone backup , which included saved Wi-Fi passwords and personal settings. They sold their Nexus 6P under the Google brand, preferring to use the iPhone until they find a suitable replacement Android device. Within two months, during which Tanglebrook had no access to his Android device, the backup was deleted without warning.
While this might come as a surprise to most Android users with backups, Google knows it treats your backup data as ephemeral when your Android device goes inactive. According to its support page, “Manage and restore your device backups to Google Drive:”
Your backup will persist as long as you use your device. If you don’t use your device for 2 weeks, you can see the expiration date under the backup.
Example : “Expires in 54 days.”
In short, if you want to keep a backup of your phone in the cloud, you’ll have to dig into it every few weeks to keep it from being erased automatically.