Google Drive will start monitoring the content of files and prevent sharing of files that violate the terms of service

Cloud storage is extremely useful. You can drop files there and sync them across all your devices, and you can also share them with others very quickly. That being said, it would appear that, very soon, Google begins to “control” the files that you share, and more particularly the files which, according to its algorithms, would violate the conditions of use of its service.

Google Drive will start controlling the contents of the files

In a post published on its blog, Google explains that, whenever a file is identified as not respecting its terms of use or guidelines in place, its use may be restricted. The file in question will be marked explicitly, with a visual indication next to its name, and when a file is so restricted, users will no longer be able to share it. The system will also apply this restriction retroactively to those with whom you have already shared the said file.

and prevent sharing of files that violate the terms of use

According to the statement from Google, “from now on, the owner of a content in Google Drive will receive an email indicating that the restriction has been put in place and informing him of how he can request an in-depth analysis if he believes that it is a mistake. For content in shared drives, it is the person in charge of the shared drive who will receive the notification.”

Google specifies that this control has been put in place to prevent possible abuse of its service, some people using Google Drive to host illegal content, such as malware, pornographic files, etc. Once again, on paper, this is good, but we’ll have to see how things really go.

If the detection isn’t fine enough and many of your files get restricted by mistake, the entire Google Drive experience could be impacted.

Google also explains on its blog that users will have a dedicated system to request an in-depth analysis if they believe that a file has been restricted in error. No one knows at this time how long it will take for this analysis to be carried out, but it is suspected that this could be problematic in certain situations.

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