Blogs on Gmail and Google Accounts

There are many among us who still prefer to access their emails through an email client. They mention obvious advantages such as one user interface for all email accounts, offline access, local storage etc.  So, in this blog, we shall look at the sequence of steps to add a Gmail address to an email client - Mozilla Thunderbird using IMAP. However, before starting the process, we shall check two very important details: under Gmail settings Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab, we need to check if IMAP is set as enabled in the IMAP access section. under the Google Accounts My Account page security tab, we need to check the status for 2-step verification for the account. Note: Having 2-step verification is not a requirement for this process. But, I am a huge advocate of having it enabled on the account for enhanced security. With these two details checked, we can now proceed to open Thunderbird and add this Google account there.  In the Thunderbird home screen, we locate the Email button ...

There are quite a few threads posted in the Gmail Help Community seeking guidance on ways to email Google Contacts groups or as Google calls them, Contact Labels. So, in this blog, we take a look at the various ways we can do that, namely: Via the Google Contacts web UI. Via the Google Contacts Android app. Via the Gmail Compose autocomplete UI. Via the Gmail Compose Contact picker option. Section 1: Via the Google Contacts web UI. The Google Contacts web UI refers to the https://contacts.google.com/ page for that specific Google account.  In there:  Select the Contact group or label you wish to email from the left panel (shown as 1) Select a single contact from the list by clicking on the check box to its left. Check on the down arrow next to the Select box above (shown as 2), and select All. This should select all Contacts. Click on the Send email (envelope, shown as 3) icon. This will bring up the Gmail Compose window with all the contacts entered as To recipient...

One of the common questions that get asked in Gmail and the Google Accounts Help Communities is about ways to keep Google Accounts secure. Knowing what to do when one suspects things can help better manage those situations and initiate the necessary actions to mitigate any imminent threats.  The easiest way to check for unauthorized account access/suspicious activity is to click on the Details link below the Last account activity link at the bottom of the Gmail Inbox page. It includes any time that your email was accessed using a regular web browser, a POP client, a mobile device, etc. and lists the IP address that accessed your email, the associated location, as well as the time and date. If you find any suspicious IP addresses that may have been used to compromise your account (use a reverse IP lookup such as the  https://whatismyipaddress.com/ip-lookup  or  http://ip-lookup.net ) to acquire more details about the IP and confirm that it is (or not) something suspic...