Yahoo to reset and re-issue inactive IDs starting mid-July

[Shawn Knight]

Here’s the scenario: you’re signing up for a new service or web account and without fail, the username you’re interested in is already taken. Sure, you can attach a string of numbers or characters to the end but it’s not really the same. We’ve all been there before but fortunately, Yahoo will soon be doing something about it.

The company just announced on their tumblr that starting July 15, any Yahoo ID that has been inactive for over a year will be reset and made available once again. This will give newcomers as well as seasoned Yahoo veterans the opportunity to stake a claim at a refined username.

If you don’t want your existing Yahoo ID to be reset, Yahoo suggests that you simply log into any Yahoo product before July 15 – it’s that easy.

It’s unclear exactly how the process will take place but awarding new IDs doesn’t look like it’ll happen on a first come, first serve basis. Instead, Yahoo notes that anyone can have a shot at scoring the ID they want in mid July and then check back in mid August to discover which one they got.

It’s anyone’s guess as to how many Yahoo IDs will ultimately be deactivated but if I had to guess, it’ll probably be a lot considering the company was founded in 1995. Surely there are millions of people that created accounts early on that no longer use them for whatever reason, right?

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/52884-yahoo-to-reset-and-re-issue-inactive-ids-starting-mid-july.html

 

[Jad Chaar]

Everyone should do this.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Everyone should do this.

Are you crazy? I want to forget, I had an account with Yahoo. It's probably been 6 years and I will be happy to make it 60.

 

[Jad Chaar]

Are you crazy? I want to forget, I had an account with Yahoo. It's probably been 6 years and I will be happy to make it 60.

It opens up the opportunity for people who actually use the accounts to get one. But I dont think a username with a 3 at the end is life threatening LOL. I think 1 year may be a bit too little, it should be at least 3.

 

[cliffordcooley]

It opens up the opportunity for people who actually use the accounts to get one.

By people are you referring to automated spam (aka: smut) generating servers?

 

[Jad Chaar]

By people are you referring to automated spam (aka: smut) generating servers?

Lol true. You got me .

 

[St1ckM4n]

Re-using usernames is a bad and dangerous idea. There are thousands of 'celebrities' in their own Internet circle who are inactive. Giving their username to someone else can have dangerous consequences that reach out into real life.

e.g. new user starts posting illegal stuff, this leaks through to people who know original user in real life.

 

[Jad Chaar]

Yeah true. What if someone has a Youtube example, that is connected to a email account, solely dedicated to getting messages about new subscribers. They are screwed lol.

 

[gamoniac]

Re-using usernames is a bad and dangerous idea. There are thousands of 'celebrities' in their own Internet circle who are inactive. Giving their username to someone else can have dangerous consequences that reach out into real life.

e.g. new user starts posting illegal stuff, this leaks through to people who know original user in real life.

Then again, they need to clean house, and they can't take care of everyone else on the Internet. Phone numbers and licenses are reissued. Social security numbers (in the US) are reused. And we somehow survived all that (not that they were good ideas). If there are problems we have to worry about on the Internet, this won't make it on the list, although you would most probably receive an email intended for someone else...

 

[St1ckM4n]

Social Security? Damn, what the hell? Phone number is less personal, but an internet username to some people is like their Internet ID.

 

[gamoniac]

Social Security? Damn, what the hell? Phone number is less personal, but an internet username to some people is like their Internet ID.

Yep, email is used to uniquely identify a person, but we are talking about email addresses that have not been used in over a year. I agree with JC713 above. 3 years is probably a better length of time.

 

[wiyosaya]

I got an e-mail this morning from Yahoo about an account I rarely use. All I had to do to "reactivate" was log in. However, I am with others on this. Let people get creative and think up different user names if the one they want is already taken.

However, I would not be surprised if this is to clean up accounts that are inactive rather than allowing existing user names to expire. If they are inactive, then they are at least somewhat at risk of being hijacked.

 

[tipstir]

Thanks for the update! I've had my account with them a year after they started. They started in 1994 and had joined them in 1995.

 

[St1ckM4n]

Er, be careful about emails you receive saying "your account is inactive and will be deleted, click here to reactivate". That's phishing.

Make sure you log into the Yahoo services directly from a browser, not via links.

 

[dennis777]

I wish they deactivate the spam accounts too.