I’ve been wondering about this for a while now. Google Drive has an odd problem where anyone who knows your email can add files to your storage without permission. I see complaints about this all over, yet nothing changes. Google’s response is always “that’s how we designed it,” which I find hard to understand. Why can’t they implement a simple approval system? A popup asking “do you want to accept this file from this person?” would go a long way, or even a feature to automatically accept files from trusted contacts. This seems like a straightforward solution that would improve user satisfaction. I’m really curious why they haven’t tackled this issue or if there’s something I’m missing about their reasoning.
i think a lot of users just rly dont see it as a big deal or are too comfy with the ecosystem. like u said, google’s stuff is everywhere, and migrating to another platform is a hassle. some folks trust google without even realizing that’s a bad move sometimes.
Convenience beats security for most people. Google Drive works perfectly with Gmail, Docs, and everything else millions use daily. Once you’re in that ecosystem, switching means losing all that integration and learning new platforms from scratch. Most users don’t even know about the security issues you brought up. They get shared files all the time and think it’s totally normal instead of a potential risk. There’s also the network effect - when your coworkers, clients, and friends all use Drive, you’re basically stuck with it whether you like it or not. Average users care more about easy access and collaboration than security stuff they don’t really get.
Google won’t fix this because it hurts their bottom line. They want you locked into their ecosystem, and the friction-free sharing boosts engagement while collecting more data. They probably see unsolicited file sharing as a feature, not a bug - it drives platform activity. Plus, adding proper permission controls would mean major infrastructure changes that’d slow down sharing speeds. Most enterprise customers just work around it with admin controls and company policies anyway. Bottom line: Google has zero incentive to change something that generates more user interactions and feeds their advertising machine.