Google has rolled out a new update for Google Drive that now allows users to block people and limit those who can share files with them.
Almost two years after Google acknowledged the spamming issues stemming from its widely used Google Drive, the company is finally introducing the ability for end users to block other users, one of the most rudimentary functions of using an online tool. The arrival of the block feature on Google Drive was on the cards since May this year and now Google is officially rolling it out.
Feature visibility may take up to 15 days from the start of the feature release, which began last week on July 22. Before this roll out, there was basically no way to stop unwanted files being shared with users that would appear in the ‘Shared with me’ folder in the Google Drive automatically.
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Source: Google Blog
Google Drive is a cloud storage service that allows any Google account holder to upload, store, and access files stored in their 15 GB free allotment. It can be used to seamlessly share files with friends, colleagues, academicians, or basically anyone with a Google account to collaborate effortlessly.
The Drive’s best feature, i.e., the ability to share files without requiring any prior permissions, is also what caused the spam issues. Just the email ID is sufficient to share spam, which usually contains sexually explicit media and invitations.
Friends, I keep getting Google Drive spam like this, and I have no clue how to stop it. Does anyone have any pointers? pic.twitter.com/cVF0JM4GOvOpens a new window
— Miguel de Icaza (@migueldeicaza) July 20, 2021Opens a new window
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When you think about it, it’s really odd that a user did not have the control over who could share files with them. What’s even peculiar is that the issue was left unaddressed for years, a product-level failure on the part of the company’s management.
Google certainly took long enough to allow users to rid themselves of the nuisance that came in the form of email as well as phone notifications for potentially malicious files. Microsoft’s OneDrive, for example, has had the blocking functionality in place for years now.
Google’s update for Drive is applicable to the complete suite of products under the Google Workspace umbrella, although Drive is the one tool where spammers were consistently intruding in on users. So if user X blocks user Y, not only will user Y lose their file sharing privileges with user X, they will also lose out on interacting with them over other Google apps and services such as Hangouts, Chat, Photos, Maps, YouTube, Google Pay, etc.
Once blocked, user Y will also no longer have access to any files that user X may have previously shared. To block someone, simply right click on the file shared by a user, and click Block ‘user XYZ.’
Source: Google
Closing Thoughts
Google’s model is to make money off user data so as long as that wasn’t disrupted, the company had no reason to update its products until it became a problem (for them, not for the users). All things said and done, most of Google’s products, including 15 GB of Google Drive, are free and decent enough to work around. However, the company should actively look into issues that exploit the fundamentals of a safe online experience on non-email services.
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