Google is the undisputed tech behemoth of today’s digital landscape. Millions of dynamic businesses and tech-savvy individuals love and use Google’s products, like Gmail, Drive, Maps, and more because they offer numerous user-friendly features and capabilities.
The downside of these products is that they often contain business-critical data. This wealth of data can be a weakness for businesses, especially those that don’t take regular data backups. Without backups, organizations are vulnerable to catastrophic data losses due to unforeseen circumstances, such as cyberattacks targeting Google products. According to recent reports, these attacks are on the rise, making data backup with a trusted solution like SpinBackup vital to business continuity.
But what if an organization’s Google Workspace is already compromised?
Is Google account recovery possible?
Yes, it is!
This guide to Google account recovery will show you exactly how to restore your Google Accounts and valuable business data. Thanks for reading!
Recovery Options and Steps for an Enterprise Gmail Account
Recovering an enterprise Gmail account is a critical task that can arise due to various reasons, such as forgotten passwords, unauthorized access, accidental deletions, or even security breaches. Given the importance of email communication in business operations, it is crucial to have a well-structured recovery process to ensure swift restoration of access and data integrity.
Steps to Recover an Enterprise Gmail Account:
Initial Troubleshooting:
Encourage the user to attempt to recover their account using the “Forgot Password?” link on the Gmail sign-in page. This process typically involves verifying the user’s identity through recovery options previously set up, such as a recovery email or phone number.
Ensure the user checks the login page carefully for any error messages that might provide additional context regarding the login issue.
Use Google Admin Console:
Administrators of Google Workspace accounts can use the Google Admin Console to reset passwords and recover accounts. Navigate to the Admin Console, go to “Users,” and find the affected account. Here, an admin can reset the password or review the account for any suspicious activity.
Account Restoration:
If the account is suspended or compromised, assess the cause, address the security concern, and reinstate access. This may involve adjusting security settings, such as enabling two-step verification to enhance account security.
Professional Support:
If the above steps are unsuccessful, contact Google Workspace Support for further assistance. They can provide more in-depth technical support and help address issues that cannot be resolved through standard recovery processes.
Using Third-Party Tools like SpinOne:
Third-party tools such as SpinOne (formerly Spinbackup) can be invaluable for enterprise Gmail account recovery and management. SpinOne provides automated cloud-to-cloud backup solutions and cybersecurity protection specifically designed for Google Workspace. Here’s how to integrate and utilize such tools:
Setting Up SpinOne:
Begin by integrating SpinOne with your Google Workspace account. This involves authenticating SpinOne with the necessary permissions to access your Gmail and other data. Follow documentation from SpinOne for proper configuration.
Automated Backups:
SpinOne automatically backups Gmail data, including emails, attachments, and settings. In case of data loss, these backup archives can be used to restore emails and documents to their original state, quickly and accurately.
Data Protection and Security:
Beyond backups, SpinOne offers security features such as ransomware protection, security audits, and artificial intelligence-driven anomaly detection, which can prevent unauthorized access and data breaches before they occur.
Recovery Process:
In the event of data loss or account issues, you can use SpinOne’s backup vault to selectively restore emails, contacts, and calendar events to ensure minimal disruption to business operations.
By leveraging a combination of Google’s built-in recovery features and robust third-party solutions like SpinOne, businesses can ensure that their enterprise Gmail accounts are resilient against data loss and security threats, while guaranteeing swift recovery when issues arise.
How to Recover Data from Google Drive
Both users and admins can recover files deleted from Google Drive. However, users can only recover files that were deleted within the last 30 days and if they have not yet exceeded their Drive storage quota.
Also, the following data cannot be restored by anyone:
Check your Drive’s Trash folder. It appears in the left navigation.
Right-click on the files you want to restore and click Restore.
You can also use Google’s file recovery robot to restore files that were deleted within the last 25 days. Here’s how:
Request file recovery. On clicking this link, you will be signed out of all other Google accounts because Google needs to verify your identify before the robot can execute your recovery request.
Sign in to your Google account to confirm your request.
Google will send you a confirmation email.
The robot will search your account for deleted files and send you an update within one hour.
If it finds files, it will put them back in your Drive and send you an update.
Even if it doesn’t find any files, it will update you so know the status of your request.
How admins can recover users’ files from Google Drive
Find the user whose Drive files are to be recovered and point to them.
Click More options > Restore data.
Select the date range for the data you want to restore, from within the last 25 days.
Under Application, click the Down arrow > Drive.
Click Restore.
Ask the user to confirm if the restored files now appear in their Drive.
Admins can also restore data from Google Drive using Google Vault using the same procedure as for Gmail message recovery. Again, the restored files cannot be directly restored to the user’s Drive.
How to Recover Data from Google Workspace Account History
Google Workspace Account history is a log of all your activities using Google’s various services. To view it, follow these steps:
Go to your Google Account.
Click on Data & privacy in the left navigation panel.
Scroll down to “History settings” and click on My Activity.
From here, you can:
View your activity by day and time
use the search bar and filters to find specific activities
Filter activities by date and (Google) product
To view the Activity history on your Google Account, you should have turned on:
Web & App activity
Timeline
YouTube history
Efficient, Reliable Enterprise Google Workspace Account Recovery with SpinBackup
Keep the data in all your Google Accounts safe and secure with SpinBackup. This reliable Google Workspace backup and recovery solution gives you the freedom to recover a single email or restore an entire Gmail inbox. Choose from many storage locations and clouds to back up your data in a secure, compliant manner.
With this comprehensive data protection solution for Google Workspace, you get customizable backup retention, automated 3X daily incremental backups, flexible data restoration options, DLP, and local downloads. Take advantage of these capabilities to protect your entire Google Workspace from errors, malicious deletions, and cyber threats like malware and ransomware.
Will Tran is the Product Manager at Spin.AI, where he guides the product's strategic direction, oversees feature development and ensures that the solution solves his clients’ cybersecurity needs.
Will is a security professional who started his career at Lockheed Martin where he worked on National Security Space programs in business development and product management.
Will holds a BA in Economics and Mathematics from UCSB and an MBA with a specialization in Technology Management and Marketing from UCLA Anderson School of Management.
At Lockheed Martin, Will developed the multi-year strategy campaign and supported the product development of a national security satellite program for the United States Air Force, which resulted in a multi-billion dollar contract.
During business school, Will consulted 2 non-profit organizations as part of a series of national consulting case competitions. He set strategic priorities, optimized business operations, and developed a process to qualify new revenue streams for his non-profit clients. These initiatives resulted in 15-20% increase in annual surplus.
In his spare time, Will can be found at local coffee shops around Los Angeles, traveling to different countries, or hanging out with his cat.
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