I'm trying to shut down a Gmail address in such a way that:
- Nobody knows what the **** happened to me
- It blocks or does not receive emails
- It does not allow anyone else to create the whatever@gmail.com again
How can this be done? Is such a thing supported? Is there a next best? Simply abandoning it is not good enough – I want it dead but not buried.
Best Answer
According to this Google support page (as well as other resources on the 'Net), Google does not recycle old usernames.1
So you can simply delete that account. Or simply stop using it.
If you want to future-proof it against Google changing their policy you could...
Trash
You might wish to do this in any case, because if you delete it eventually messages sent to it will bounce, so people will know it's gone. If you want to keep them guessing, you'll need to keep the mailbox "alive".
1 Unlike some other, inferior, services.