Users of Google Drive have been angered due to a glitch that left some unable to access files from the last six months.
Google has claimed it’s investigating the issue, which was first reported on November 22nd by a user who said their Drive was reset to a May 2023 version.
It remains unclear how many have been affected, however there are reports from multiple countries.
Drive is part of Google Workspace, which is a range of applications that has over three billion users worldwide.
Users have been angrily reporting the issue on Google’s support site, calling it “very devastating.” One user added “the files are very important to me.”
Others claimed to have lost files from recent months, writing how stressful the situation has been.
“This is crazy and not a dependable cloud service. In a panic!”
Another posted: “I pay for this service every month and will pursue legal action if needed. Unacceptable and highly aggravating.”
The first user to complain was using Drive for Desktop on Windows, and has said none of the fixes Google suggested have worked.
Google posted to the forum claiming they were investigating reports, and would “follow up with more updates.”
The company suggested users not disconnect their account in the Drive for desktop app, and don’t delete or move the app data folder. It also recommended making a copy of the folder, if the user is able to.
Data privacy expert, Enza Ianopollo, from an analyst firm, said the situation was a “big deal” for Google.
She said it was “very, very necessary” for the company to give users a full explanation of what happened.
“Not just in terms of ‘wait, your data will appear back,’ but really understanding what happened to the data.”
She said business customers particularly, would need to know exactly when and if their files were accessed or altered, as it would be them, not Google, who would be liable for data loss.
