If you have accidentally signed in somewhere on Google Drive using your Google account and you’re worried that you might end up losing access to your credentials somehow, there is a way you can opt for remotely signing out of Google Drive. In this guide, we will be talking about just that in an easy-to-grasp format, so you won’t struggle to accomplish the task at hand. Keep on reading until the end for the best results.
Google Drive happens to be one of the most famous cloud storage solutions for devices and users all across the world. It is known for its innate ability to help individuals and businesses rely on remote servers to back up important data, files, and other media safely and soundly. Added features, such as adding Google Drive tags to organize files and sharing Google Drive with non-Gmail users, make the platform highly desirable for its enormous customer base.
- Do check out: How to disable People Chips in Google Sheets.
What is Google Drive?
Google Drive was first released on April 24, 2012, and its sole purpose was to introduce people to the then-rising technology of remote servers. Fortunately, Drive turned out to be a successful product, gathering millions of people as the service’s customers and becoming a big hit for Google. The way the developers curated this platform, such results were duly expected. Now that we are almost nearing the end of 2022 today, Google Drive has more than 1 billion active users.
To talk about some of Drive’s most capable features, we’ve got offline availability, moving photos and videos from Drive to Google Photos, various educational add-ons, and even through-and-through encryption. You may also import Google Photos onto a USB flash drive if you ever require it, not to mention being able to save Gmail attachments to Drive without breaking a sweat.
With all that said and done, however, there is one worrying concern about signing in with your Google account somewhere and leaving the place without signing out. There is a potential risk of you getting your account stolen from you, especially when someone else manages to get their hands on your account. For instance, a common scenario is when people borrow someone else’s device to check their account and forget they need to sign out.
A security risk can arise here, and if you cannot access that device again shortly, you may end up worrying yourself. In such a case, there is practically no need to feel anxious. Thankfully, Google allows us to sign out of particular devices remotely, so you don’t have to gain physical access to any of the devices you use anymore. We will explore this method in the following section without wasting any further time.
- If you are new to Google Drive and wish to get more out of it daily, we highly recommend checking out these 10 tips for a great Google Drive usage experience.
Remotely signing out of Google Drive
Google Drive is affiliated with your main Google account, and your Google account is made possible when you create a Gmail account. Therefore, you are using a singular Gmail account to sign into all of Google’s various services, such as Google Photos, Gmail, and, of course, Google Drive. The point we’re trying to make is that once you sign out of your Google account itself remotely on any device, you are bound to log out of Google Drive as well.
Let’s talk about how this will be done in the following steps. Make sure to follow the guidelines exactly as they’re written for the best results.
1. The first step is gaining access to your Google account’s home page. From there, we will be tweaking the log-out operation for Google Drive remotely. Use this direct link to the My Account page to complete this step quickly. As soon as you’re there, click “Security” in the sidebar to continue to the next step. Check out the screenshot below for a visual explanation of how to get this done.
Accessing the “Security” section of the Google account
2. As soon as you move past the initial step, continue ahead by scrolling down and finding the “Your devices” space. It should be in the bottom half of the “Security” page. Right after that, click on “Manage all devices.” Again, the screenshot below will make it easier to grasp the process.
Clicking on “Manage all devices”
3. The moment you click on “Manage all devices,” another page will start loading up on the screen called “Your devices.” This section will consist of all your devices, such as iPhones, tablets, Chromebooks, Windows PCs, and Mac computers, that you’ve ever logged in using your Google account.
What you have to do now is select the device that you want your Google Drive account to be logged out of. You can do this easily by clicking on the specified section beside the device’s name. Check out the screenshot below for a visual illustration of how to get this done. Try taking notice of all your devices and then come to a proper conclusion.
Selecting a device to log out remotely
4. After selecting the suitable device you wish to log your Google Drive account out of, proceed by clicking on the “Sign out” button on the next page. Doing so will remotely sign you out of the selected device without ever having to access the device yourself. This is one of the many helpful benefits of using a Gmail account.
Signing out of the Windows device
5. Lastly, when you click on the “Sign out” button, you will be required to issue a confirmation. A prompt will surface on the screen, asking you to select the “Sign out” button again to conclude the operation. You will need to complete this step for the changes to take effect properly.
Confirming the sign-out operation
That is all there is to know about remotely logging out of your Google Drive account. After you affirm your selection by opting for “Sign out” in the previous step, you will successfully sign out from your Google account on that device painlessly. Although there are other more complicated methods of achieving the task at hand, the technique we’ve detailed above is the most fitting in terms of ease of use.
We now have to conclude the write-up. Thanks for reading!
Conclusion
The promise of Google Drive’s robust security can only be sustained if you let the service do its job correctly. You cannot expect it to function the way the developers intend it to if you end up losing your account credentials to someone. That way, you may as well be compromising your Google account, thereby giving up access to all of the Google services that you’ve signed into, such as Gmail and Google Photos.
However, thanks to this straightforward convenience put forth by Google, there is a workable way to sign out of any device you’ve logged in using your Google credentials. This article has talked you through the utmost essential steps you can use to get this done, so here’s hoping that you found the write-up useful for your cause. Let us know how it went in the comments section ahead. We would love to read your feedback!
- Recommended read: How to remotely log out from Google Chrome on all devices.
