Recently, I've been getting a lot of spam notifications from Google Drive. Here's a sample:
The notifications come direct to my Android phone via the Drive app - they don't appear in my Gmail spam folder. There is no way to report the abuse.
If I go to the list of notification in the Android apps, there's no option to report that the notification is spam.
If I'm stupid enough to open the spam file, there is a context menu but - again - no way to report spam.
What about the detail pane? That'll have something, surely?
Nope! Nothing.
Let me be me clear, just as Zawinski's law says "Every program attempts to expand until it can read mail" - so every Google app expands to be a vector for spam.
There's also no way to report the spam from the web version of Drive. The notifications simply don't appear there.
In typical Google fashion, there's no support forthcoming for users who are inundated with these messages. So the poor users howl into the void - desperate for Google to respond. But all Google will do is spout platitudes.
Hi there. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) April 2, 2022
Hi, Denise. We know this is a serious issue and we're working to improve our spam detection and prevention.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) April 2, 2022
Hi, David. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) April 2, 2022
Hi there. If you don't want to get file shares from someone in Google Drive, you can block them. If you use Google Drive for work or school, you can’t block someone in your domain. Learn more here: https://t.co/z57sIZ8fbA. Hope this helps!
— Google Drive (@googledrive) April 1, 2022
Hi there. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through. Hope we helped.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) April 1, 2022
Hi there. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) March 31, 2022
Hi again, Jack. Let's connect you with our Support Team for help. Follow the link to get some help: https://t.co/oraycJxDBh. Keep us posted!
— Google Drive (@googledrive) March 31, 2022
Hi there. You can block users in several different ways. Find out more in our article here: https://t.co/z57sIZ8fbA. I hope this help!
— Google Drive (@googledrive) March 31, 2022
Hi, Noah. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) March 31, 2022
Hi, David. Please report the files to remove them and help train our systems (https://t.co/laF0d4LJru). We are constantly working to make our detection better and give users more options for managing the spam that sneaks through.
— Google Drive (@googledrive) March 29, 2022
Tedious, isn't it?
You will notice that all the links point to sites which don't actually help! When people ask Google how they report spam - Google are utterly silent.
My question is HOW to do this via Android phone/app?
— 🍿 Popcultured4 💚+💉💉💉 (@PopCultured4) April 2, 2022
In the link I only see a way to report the file on desktop is there no way to report the file on the android app ? I sent feedback to Google but I don't see a way to report the file on mobile pic.twitter.com/DYT9Rw11Ds
— Joe Hill (@jhill641) March 30, 2022
i literally cannot block them because when i go i to my email or google drive there is no file
— kayla ‹𝟹 lilyleo era (@jasperjareau) March 29, 2022
I get the notification on my phone but I don't see them pop up in my Drive. How do I report them from just the notification? Or is there a folder I'm not seeing in my drive with all of them?
— Jeff Venuti (@jeffvenuti) March 29, 2022
I would need to accept the files to report them, not doing that. This has been a daily occurrence
— David (@GamingDaveUK) April 2, 2022
I cant report them unless I click on them. I see the notifications but can't see them in my drive
— Sarah Radz (@sarahradz_) March 31, 2022
I think it is clear that Google have lost control of their platforms. There is no central authority in Google who is in charge of ensuring a consistent and pleasant user experience. Their customer service agents aren't empowered to actually help users - nor can they escalate emergent issues to management.
As an abusive monopoly, there's very little incentive for Google to fix this.
So, like a mug, I'm attempting to catch the passing eye of some Google employee who can raise this internally.
I can only assume that heading in the third image goes on to say “_💘❤️ You have a Fucking Document”
Old enough to remember when “spam” was the thing pushing people into the Google ecosystem.
(Preface: Am Eng @ Google on a Google Drive adjacent team)
I get these spam shares too and yea there probably should be a way to report directly from the notifications list.
There should be a "Report abuse" button if you do the following:
- Go to the the "Shared" tab at the bottom
- Tap the 3 dot menu for the shared spam file (I think the spam file should appear in this tab)
- Scroll to the bottom of the bottom sheet
Unfortunately, that doesn't always work. The spammers quite often remove access soon after sharing - presumably to prevent a flood of post-notification abuse. So, in my case, the spam does not appear in the shared tab.
I've been using the "send feedback to Drive" option on the notification tab in the app. Every single time I get spam, I spam them. But soon enough, I'll just remove the app. I get more spam than actual use from Drive.
This Article was mentioned on matthewminer.name
I've got the same stuff every day. It annoys me to no end.
Why can't the twitter agents escalate?
It is very disappointing that there is still a need for this given the number of incidents highlighting it over several years.
Glad to see I'm not alone, but frustrated to learn that everyone is getting the same response. No file, just these scummy notifications. Thanks for bringing this out into the light.
One option that Google could add is to have a whitelist of who you share files with. All other files are blocked until you add the person.