Google is disabling account sign-ins on really old versions of Android

Google is disabling account sign-ins on smartphones running Android Gingerbread (2.3.7) or lower starting September 27th. The company says that if you try to sign in to your Google account on or after that date, you may get username and password errors when accessing Google products and services such as Gmail, YouTube, and Maps. Google suggests that if you have the ability to update to a newer Android version (specifically Android Honeycomb or higher) then you should do so. Google says you should still be able to log in to your accounts using the web browser, however.

According to the support article, Google is doing this as part of its “ongoing efforts to keep our users safe”. While nothing specific has been said as to why it’s required, sometimes updates to sign-in processes and secure browsing means that older devices get left in the dust. If you have an older Android device running Android Gingerbread, then it’s probably high time for an upgrade, though you can also look on your device’s XDA forum to see if there’s a custom ROM available. Many older smartphones can run newer versions of Android thanks to custom ROMs — even the Samsung Galaxy S II that launched in 2011 has an unofficial LineageOS 18.1 port based on Android 11, the latest stable version of Android.

Blocking Google account sign-ins on Android Gingerbread and older isn’t a huge deal, as a very, very, very small percentage of users are using such an old Android version. Even so, if you log in to your Google account on such an old device before the 27th of September, then it will stay logged in unless you get logged out for any reason.

Google also says the following may cause you to run into the sign-in error, too:

When support ends for sign-in with a Google Account on Android 2.3.7 and below, you will receive a username or password error if you try to sign in to your devices or to add an email or calendar account. The following cases can also lead to this error if you:

1. Perform a factory reset of your device and try to sign in.
2. Change your password either on the device or on a different device, which then signs you out everywhere else. When you try to sign in again, you will receive the error message.
3. Remove your account from your device and re-add it.
4. Create an account on the device.

You can check your Android version by going to settings, system, advanced, and tapping system update.

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