Online harassment can appear from the most surprising of sources, with Google Drive file sharing being one example. Google is reacting by introducing a new user blocking feature.
In a post on the Workspace Updates blog, Google explains how Drive’s sharing features support productivity and collaboration, but that “bad actors can abuse tools that are meant to facilitate helpful sharing.” With that in mind, it will soon be possible for one Drive user to block another user from sharing files with them.
Enabling the block for a specific user means they can’t share any content with you in future, all existing files and folders shared with you by that user are removed, and any access they had to your content is also revoked. So whatever abuse was occurring will not only stop, but further abuse is prevented. And that extends to other Google apps and services (Hangouts, Chat, Photos, Maps, YouTube) once the block is initiated. If you block the wrong person by mistake, don’t worry, they can easily be removed from your blocked list.
Google started rolling out the new blocking feature on July 22, but it could be up to 15 days before it’s visible to all users. All Google Workspace customers, as well as anyone using G Suite Basic or Business, and all personal Google account holders will have access to user blocking once the roll out is complete.
