Google has announced that it will prevent any sign-ins to the services they offer to Smartphones running old versions of Android. The company is disabling sign-ins from phones running Android 2.3.7 (also known as Gingerbread) or any version below beginning September 27, 2021.
Google’s community manager has advised users to update to newer versions of Android that are from 3.0 (Honeycomb), to maintain access to Google apps and services on that device.
“When support ends for sign-in with a Google Account on Android 2.3.7 and below, you will receive a username or password error if you try to sign in to your devices or to add an email or calendar account” Other factors that they have mentioned could lead to these errors include;
- Factory resets
- Changing account passwords on any devices signed in.
- Removing the account and re-adding it.
- Creating a new account on the unsupported devices.
Is it likely that the now common software updates that include secure browsing might be out of reach for these devices? Probably, since the Google says their move is part of efforts to keep their users safe.
Is there a way to access your Google account after that if you cannot update by deadline? Fortunately, yes. Your account will still be available through common web browsers.
Android Gingerbread and versions lower than that were released more than 10 years ago, and it is safe to say that not that many devices in the market are still running these versions. Still, It is crucial you know you’re about to be kicked out if you are one of them.
