Skip to main content

Get 2 free GB of Google Drive storage by reviewing your security settings

Want two gigabytes of free Google Drive storage? Hurry up and check your Google security settings.

Google wants you to lock down your security settings, and is willing to bribe you to get that done. They’ve made a step-by-step checklist of things you need to review for the sake of your security, and will give out 2GB of free Drive space to anyone who gets through it.

Recommended Videos

Today is Safer Internet Day, and the checkup is Google’s way of celebrating. The 2GB incentive is becoming a tradition — they did the same thing on February 8 last year.

To get started, head to Google’s security checkup page and go through the steps. All told this shouldn’t take you more than five minutes, and it’s totally worth doing even without the 2GB bribe. In a few steps, you will:

  • Check your recovery information, including your phone number and backup email address. These come in handy should you ever lose your password or otherwise lose access to your account: they can verify to Google that you are who you say you are.
  • Check your recent security events, by identifying any changes anyone else made to your security settings recently. If you don’t remember doing something, it’s probably time to change your password.
  • Check your recent devices, to make sure your data was only accessed by computers you recognize.
  • Check your account permissions, reviewing all the applications you gave access to your account at one point or another. If you don’t use something anymore, it’s a good idea to remove it.
  • Your app passwords, although this only really applies to people who set up two-factor authentication with legacy apps that don’t support the feature. If you no longer use any of these passwords, shut it down.

All of these are good things to check regularly, so consider bookmarking the checkup page when you’re done.

Sadly, the promotion does not apply to Google Apps for Work and Google Apps for Education accounts — just personal accounts. Still, it’s a no-brainer for the rest of us: free storage and better security.

Justin Pot
Justin's always had a passion for trying out new software, asking questions, and explaining things – tech journalism is the…
Google just made this vital Gmail security tool completely free
The top corner of Gmail on a laptop screen.

Hackers are constantly trying to break into large websites to steal user databases, and it’s not entirely unlikely that your own login details have been leaked at some point in the past. In cases like that, upgrading your password is vital, but how can you do that if you don’t even know your data has been hacked?

Well, Google thinks it has the answer because it has just announced that it will roll out dark web monitoring reports to every Gmail user in the U.S. This handy feature was previously limited to paid Google One subscribers, but the company revealed at its Google I/O event that it will now be available to everyone, free of charge.

Read more
Your Google One plan just got 2 big security updates to keep you safe online
Two Google Pixel 7 Pro smartphones.

Google just added some major new security features to keep its Google One subscribers safe while on the web. After all, the internet is where you spend a lot of your time, whether that's looking things up, paying bills, shopping, booking appointments, or sharing photos with family and friends. That’s a lot of information, and Google wants to keep subscribers safe from the darker side of the web.

Regardless of whether you use an iPhone or an Android smartphone, all Google One subscribers are getting the following two security features.
VPN by Google One for everyone

Read more
Apple’s security trumps Microsoft and Twitter’s, say feds
Apple's Craig Federighi speaking about macOS security at WWDC 2022.

Apple has long held a reputation for rock-solid security, and now the U.S. government seemingly agrees after praising the company for its security procedures. At the same time, the feds have suggested Microsoft and Twitter need to pull their socks up and make their products much more secure for their users, according to CNBC.

In a speech given at Carnegie Mellon University, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly pointed to Apple as a company that took security and accountability seriously, and suggested other companies should take note.

Read more