How Do I Kick My Ex-Friend From Our Shared Google Account?
Between all this talk about Family Sharing for Apple’s new Plus services and the fact that I finally set up a home Netflix account on my TV the other day, I think a lot about how to minimize the financial impact of my technology needs. … And this always leads to a conversation with my roommates, during which I evaluate how much they can contribute to the services that I really need (or vice versa).
I’m glad to know that I’m not the only one pondering these issues (and contemplating creating secret families with people I am not actually associated with in order to gain access to a shared service). In this week’s Tech 911 column, Lifehacker reader Maddie wrote to us to talk about an issue she was having with account sharing:
“I have a former friend who got me out of my main but shared YouTube and Gmail account. I reset my password and changed the authorization steps, but I don’t want her to somehow come back and change my information again. Is there a way to completely block her devices from accessing my accounts without deleting said accounts? “
First, do you have a shared YouTube and Gmail account? I’m assuming you’re using this setting for YouTube Premium – not because you’re both using the same email address, Google Drive space, or any other Google services that could be a big security issue if you let another person get access. (However, the thought of maddieand [name] bff@gmail.com’s email address really makes me laugh.)
Based on the tone of your letter, I am also assuming that your ex-friend and you are no longer talking, and you would like to keep control of this shared account for yourself – without your ex-friend’s ability to stop you. , it. We hope you pay for the services you share, if applicable, or it will get worse.
If it isn’t, here’s how I would secure my shared Google account from someone else. First, and most obviously, I had to make sure I picked a password that the other person couldn’t guess. Do not use a different password for another account that you have, in case they also know that password for some reason.
Then I would go to the Security section of your Google Account Settings and scroll down to the Your Devices section. Delete anything that is not you. And while you’re here, you can narrow down the list of third-party apps that have access to your (previously shared) Google account, as well as any other sites you use your Google account to sign in to.
After that – and this is a very important question – make sure you set up 2-Step Verification for your account. And make sure any additional verification steps you use are items your ex-friend doesn’t have access to. (Do not send a verification code to their devices and, for example, do not use their security key.) This could also mean that you have to restart the Authenticator app. Or rather, you’ll have to use the Change Phone option to set it up on your device (if you’ve used them before).
Also, make sure you use your number for voice or text messages if you choose this option, and generate new backup codes if you’ve used two-step verification previously. Yes, and select “Revoke All” under the “Devices You Trust” section.
Now, you’ll want to go back to the Security section of your Google Account Settings and look for the Ways to Verify It’s You section. Please confirm that your backup phone number and / or email address belongs to you and that your security question is known only to you. (If not, change it.)
And that almost goes without saying, but if you create a realfamily group to share services with your ex-friend – and that doesn’t sound like you, so I’m just leaving it here to be of use to others – you’ll want to delete them as well. …
I just started the account recovery process for my personal google account and I believe these are all the settings you will want to take a look at to make sure no one else can access your, uh, new account. …
You can also delete it all and start from scratch, provided that you only used the specified account to exchange services with your friend. If not, I’m somewhat surprised that you allowed someone else to log into their personal accounts – or, conversely, your ex-friend will be pretty pissed off when you take over their account.