Revoke an AI Agent’s Access to Email & Files

This guide walks you through removing an AI agent’s access to your email and cloud files. By the end, you will have revoked the app’s permissions, signed it out of active sessions, and verified that it can no longer read your data.

What You’ll Need

• Access to the email account (e.g., Gmail, Outlook) and the file storage service (e.g., Google Drive, OneDrive) that the AI agent was connected to.
• The login credentials for those accounts.
• If the AI agent is a third-party app, you’ll need to know its name (e.g., “SuperAI Assistant”) and where you installed it from (app store, website, etc.).

Step-by-Step

1. Identify the AI agent. Determine exactly which AI agent you want to revoke. Is it a standalone app, a browser extension, a plugin, or a service you connected via OAuth? Write down its name.
2. Revoke via the email provider’s security settings (Google Workspace / Gmail).
   1. Go to myaccount.google.com and sign in.
   2. Click Security in the left sidebar.
   3. Scroll to Third-party apps with account access and click Manage third-party access.
   4. Find the AI agent in the list. Click on it, then click Remove Access.
   5. Confirm the removal when prompted.
3. Revoke via the email provider’s security settings (Microsoft / Outlook.com).
   1. Go to account.microsoft.com and sign in.
   2. Click Privacy then Apps and services that can access your data.
   3. Find the AI agent under Apps and services and click Edit.
   4. Click Revoke and confirm.
4. Revoke file storage access (Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox). If the AI agent had access to files, it usually appears in the same third-party access lists as above. For Google Drive specifically, the same Third-party apps with account access section covers Drive. For Dropbox, go to dropbox.com/account/security and under Connected apps click Revoke next to the AI agent.
5. Revoke within the AI agent’s own settings. Log into the AI agent’s web dashboard or app. Look for Settings, Connections, or Integrations. Find the email or file service connection and click Disconnect or Remove. This is important because it tells the AI agent to stop syncing.
6. Sign out of active sessions. After revoking permissions, go back to your email and file accounts. In Google, go to Security → Your devices and click Manage all devices. Find any session that looks like the AI agent (e.g., a browser session with an unfamiliar location) and click Sign out. In Microsoft, go to account.microsoft.com → Security → Sign-in activity and review for unknown sessions.
7. Delete the AI agent app/extension (optional but recommended). If the AI agent is a browser extension, remove it from your browser (Chrome: ⋮ → Extensions → Remove; Firefox: Add-ons → Remove). If it’s a mobile app, uninstall it from your phone. This prevents it from reconnecting.
8. Change your passwords (if you suspect compromise). If you didn’t recognize the AI agent or saw suspicious activity, change your email password and enable two-factor authentication (2FA) immediately.
9. Verify revocation. After 24 hours, check the third-party access list again to confirm the AI agent is gone. Try using the AI agent – it should now show an error when trying to access your email or files.

Common Mistakes

• Only revoking in one place. You must revoke both in the email/file provider and in the AI agent’s own settings. If you only do one, the other may still hold a token.
• Forgetting about connected apps that use the same login. If you used “Sign in with Google” for the AI agent, revoking the AI agent’s access might also affect other apps that use that Google login – but that’s usually fine. Just be aware.
• Not checking for refresh tokens. Some AI agents keep a refresh token that can re-obtain access even after you revoke the main token. Signing out of all sessions and revoking via the provider’s security settings should invalidate refresh tokens, but double-check.
• Assuming uninstalling the app revokes access. Uninstalling the AI agent app does NOT revoke its server-side access. You must follow the steps above.

Tips

• Do this regularly. Review your connected apps every few months. Remove anything you no longer use.
• Use a dedicated email for AI experiments. If you’re testing AI agents, create a throwaway email and a separate cloud folder with dummy data. That way, revocation is low-stakes.
• Keep a list of what you connect. When you connect a new AI agent, note the date and what permissions you granted. This makes revocation easier later.
• Check for mobile-specific permissions. On iOS and Android, some AI agents ask for email access via the OS’s account settings. Go to Settings → Passwords & Accounts (iOS) or Settings → Accounts (Android) and remove the AI agent if it appears there.

Troubleshooting

• The AI agent still shows as connected after you revoked it. Wait a few minutes – some providers take time to propagate. If it persists, revoke again and then sign out of all sessions on that provider. If it still shows, contact the AI agent’s support.
• You can’t find the AI agent in the third-party access list. It might be listed under a different name (e.g., the company name instead of the product name). Search for the company name. If you still can’t find it, check the AI agent’s own settings – there may be a “Disconnect” button there that triggers revocation on the provider side.
• You get an error when trying to revoke. If the provider’s page fails, try a different browser or clear your cookies. If that doesn’t work, use the provider’s help center to report the issue.
• The AI agent still has access to old emails. Revoking access stops future reads, but data already copied to the AI agent’s servers may remain. You can request data deletion from the AI agent’s privacy policy or support. This is not always possible, but you should ask.
• You’re not sure if you revoked the right one. If you have multiple AI agents, revoke all of them and then re-connect only the ones you trust. That’s safer than guessing.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does revoking access delete my emails from the AI agent’s servers? No. Revoking stops future access, but data already synced may remain. You need to request deletion separately.
2. Can the AI agent reconnect without my permission? No, unless you have an OAuth refresh token that wasn’t invalidated. Following the steps above (especially signing out of all sessions) should invalidate refresh tokens.
3. Will revoking access affect other apps I use? Only if they share the same AI agent account. If you revoke a specific AI agent, only that agent loses access.
4. How long does it take for the revocation to take effect? Usually within minutes, but some providers can take up to 24 hours to fully propagate.
5. What if I don’t remember which AI agent I connected? Check the third-party access list in your email provider. You’ll see a list of all connected apps. If you don’t recognize one, revoke it and change your password.
6. Is it enough to just change my password? No. Changing your password does not revoke OAuth tokens. You must revoke the app’s access separately.

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