Google Drive Users Experience Data Loss

Recently, users of Google Drive have reported that files they saved to the cloud have suddenly disappeared, with the service reverting to its state from April or May 2023. Last week, posts began appearing on Google’s support forums from users complaining about the loss of recently saved data and changes to their folder structures.

“There is a serious issue that needs urgent attention. We have an open ticket with support, but so far, it hasn’t helped,” wrote one affected user.

Another user shared, “I pay extra every month to store my folders in the cloud to keep them safe. Now, it seems all my work is lost, and this is just a disaster.”

Importantly, activity logs for the affected accounts show no record of any changes, indicating that users did not accidentally delete their own data. Instead, the issue appears to be a malfunction in the service or a problem with data synchronization between local devices and Google’s cloud.

Google’s Response and Recommendations

A response, reportedly from Google’s support engineers, has been posted on the forums confirming that Google is investigating the issue. However, there is no information yet on when the bug will be fixed.

“Please accept my sincere apologies. I am closely monitoring this issue, and frankly, we fully agree that you are not the only one affected by this problem. Our engineers are currently investigating the root cause and possible solutions. Since the investigation is ongoing, we cannot provide a timeline for resolution. While we await further instructions from our engineers, we recommend that you do not make any changes to your root directory or data folders,” the message states.

Since there has been no official comment from Google, it remains unclear whether the missing files can be recovered or if they are permanently lost. Until the issue is resolved, it is wise to keep local backups of important data or use another cloud service for critical files.