Google denies Gmail is shutting down after viral hoax

Clarifying the rumours that created havoc among users that Google is shutting down Gmail, the tech giant on Friday took to social media platform X to announce that Gmail is not going anywhere and “is here to stay”.

A purported screenshot of an email addressed to Gmail users from Google showed the company was “sunsetting Gmail” on August 1 this year. The email also claimed that after August, Gmail will no longer “support sending, receiving and storing emails”. The screenshot was shared thousands of times over social media platforms, with creators claiming the move came after Google faced backlash over its AI image tool, Gemini. The image tool was the focus of a controversy this week after it generated images of “racially-diverse” Nazi soldiers.

Google finally stepped in and put an end to the speculations. “Gmail is here to stay,” read its post on social media. Tech experts also took to social media to curb the rumours, adding that the company was shutting down the HTML version of Gmail this year and not the entire email service.

“Gmail discontinued the HTML-only version of its service, as of January of 2024. Standard @gmail works just fine. Stupid hoax,” said Marsha Collier, a tech educator.

Tech experts clarified that Gmail discontinued its HTML-only version in January 2024, which allows users to access their emails in low-network areas, but the standard @gmail service will continue to operate normally.

Experts warn of the dangers of misinformation, citing the incident as a prime example. Richard Bagnall from Carma emphasizes the need for better tools to verify facts online.

While all social media platforms struggle with misinformation, X, formerly known as Twitter, faces particular criticism.

The EU labelled it as a major spreader of falsehoods in 2023. Despite vows to combat hate speech, X maintains a stance on protecting free speech.

The BBC has approached X for comment about this hoax, which appears to be based on a real email sent by Google in 2023. It notified people that Gmail would stop access to its most basic HTML view.

The original HTML view was used when Gmail launched in 2004 and would be unrecognisable to most people who use the service nowadays.

“We are reaching out to share an important update about Gmail,” the viral post reads.

“After years of connecting millions worldwide, enabling seamless communication, and fostering countless connections, the journey of Gmail is coming to a close.”

Gmail is the world’s most popular email service, with more than 1.5bn active users worldwide, according to Statista.

And despite emphatically rejecting the false claims in the hoax message, Google has indeed shut some services in recent years.

In 2023 alone, Google killed its Stadia gaming service, and its Snapchat-like YouTube Stories feature, and it began closing old and inactive Gmail accounts.