Google Drive will let you block other users to stop potential harassment

Google Drive adds the ability for users to prevent other accounts from sharing files with them, in a move designed to prevent potential harassment and spam on the platform. The feature, which will roll out over the next two weeks, also prevents accounts from accessing files you’ve shared with them in the past and removes all of their previous files from your drive.

“Drive’s sharing capabilities fuel productivity and collaboration, but bad actors can abuse tools designed to facilitate useful sharing,” the announcement from Google reads. “That’s why we’re creating a way to block other users. Blocking an account in Drive will also prevent it from interacting with you through other Google services such as Hangouts and Chat.

Image: Google

The search giant announced the new feature in May. He came after a report of Buzzfeed News highlighted a case where a user was unable to delete from their Drive a shared folder of an abusive ex-partner. Since the file contained harmless photographs, Drive’s existing “report as abuse” feature was not an appropriate response, and the design of the service made it difficult to permanently delete the files.

According to Google’s support page, the option to block a user will appear if you right-click on a file they’ve shared with you in Drive. There is also an option to unblock users later if you change your mind. It’s an important admission that feature sharing can easily be abused by bad actors, even when they are part of a service that is not a traditional social network.