> and there is no way in hell I'm risking that.

Yes. You need to keep a good balance in your social credit.

Self-sensure. Works as designed

Well I suppose he set himself up for that one.

This is a good example of what people do in real life when confronted with change they want vs repercussions.

Compounded by the fact that it was posted by username 'gambiting'.

I'm always curious what people think my username means. I thought of it when I was only starting to learn English at around age 10, and my young brain thought it would be amazing to combine "game" and "biting" (as in, eating games, since I loved playing them). I only discovered the word gambit much later.

this is way off topic, but what the heck. i read your name as doing a gambit, playing a gambit, or something along those lines.

risking your google account by making a report, as you observed, is a gambit :-)

I read it as gam-biting. Seemed nice enough if a bit out there for hn.

At least in real life you get a chance to face your opponent, even if it's a goliath and david mismatched weight-class scenario. An angry mob may be outgunned by the police, but at least they can still throw bricks. What can realistically be done online to hurt Google? Does there exist a digital brick heavy enough for google to even notice you throwing it?

this comment makes me happy having removed gmail from my life.

I dont give a fuck about my google account anymore.

Why do you only have one google account?

Is having multiple (non-company) Google accounts allowed per their TOC?

Since you don't need to verify your true identity, such rule would be totally pointless even if it were there.

For a number of years now you have to give a phone number to make an account. Doesn't need to be a one-to-one mapping, but it still connects the accounts.

It can be evaded by using multiple phone numbers, but if you're working that hard to not be violated by Google then chances are you aren't using Google in the first place.

> For a number of years now you have to give a phone number to make an account. Doesn't need to be a one-to-one mapping, but it still connects the accounts.

Even if the number is required (a sibling comment challenges that), it only connects your accounts if you only have one phone number, or all the phone numbers you have and use for Google accounts are publicly (or privately but through Google) tied to your identity. Otherwise it does not, to Google, connect the accounts.

I thought they keep track of "associated accounts" via IP address, browser cookies, fingerprinting and so on. There have been plenty of instances where innocent Google Acounts have been terminated due to a different account holder's activity on the same machine.

You don’t need a phone number to open a google or gmail account. It asks for it but it’s a skippable step

That hasn't been my experience on a few occasions over the last few years. Guess they changed it.

Nah it still occurs from a desktop browser.

Though I learned it does not ask for one (or is skippable) if you create an account on an android device (I use a tablet for that).

It depends, if you are signing up on a mobile device (say creating an account as part of an Android device setup) it is absolutely required in my direct experience with no way to bypass it.

However if you create a new account via a desktop browser, it's not been required.

it’s not.

for your first account, it is not required. once they think you are opening more than one, or they think you may be a bit, a working non-voip humber is required.

tragedy of the commons.

Does Google have a real life name policy?

I have 3, had them for years. Haven't been struck down by any gods yet.