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Google+ APIs will have a gradual expiration starting January 28, 2019
In a recently-published blog post, Google announced that it will shut down all Google+ APIs on March 7, 2019. This will be a gradual shutdown that will lead to intermittent failures starting January 28, 2019.
Google said that developers should have received an email that lists recently-used Google+ API methods in their projects. Google also noted the following APIs as the most commonly-used:
- Google+ REST
- Google+ Web
- Google+ Android SDK
- Google+ Domains
- Google+ Pages
As part of the shutdown, Google+ sign-ins have been deprecated. Google encouraged developers to switch to the Google Sign-in system as an alternative. OTA installs were also deprecated and were shut down.
Lastly, Google+ integrations for web or mobile apps will also shut down. This could impact website layouts or functionality, so website owners should take notice and make some changes on their end.
Google’s decision to shut down Google+ APIs stems from the two Google+ data breaches. Announced in October, the first data breach exposed private information of hundreds of thousands of users to developers. Following the breach, Google announced it would shut down Google+ for consumers in August 2019.
The second data breach impacted approximately 52.5 million users. The breach potentially exposed their public and private information to developers. Google expedited its Google+ shutdown to April 2019 following the breach.
Unfortunately for Google, parent company Alphabet potentially faces a shareholder class action lawsuit from Rhode Island. The motion is still pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California as of this writing.
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