November 4, 2025
Cloudy with a chance of bans
Google Cloud suspended customer's account 3 times, for 3 different reasons
Founder says Google locked him out thrice; crowd says don’t trust Big Cloud
TLDR: SSLMate’s Google Cloud account was suspended three times for vague reasons, then restored after public outcry. Commenters warn that unless you’re a big customer, Big Cloud can lock you out, demanding real support and transparency while joking about “cloud roulette” and AI false flags.
Google Cloud allegedly iced SSLMate’s founder out three times with different, vague reasons—and the internet brought snacks. One user dropped a previous thread and the chorus kicked in: this isn’t just Google. Patchtopic showed up with an Azure déjà vu, while skywhopper’s rallying cry was louder than a courtroom mic: vague “you broke the rules” isn’t a reason. The pragmatic crew piled on: leros warned to avoid Big Cloud unless you’re big enough to get VIP support—especially when automated systems and AI can misflag accounts.
Here’s the setup: SSLMate used Google’s own recommended method—short-lived “service accounts” that let them safely update domain records for customers. It worked… until the suspension roulette spun. Support asked for info hidden behind the locked account, no emails arrived, and somehow one customer integration kept working anyway—cue Schrödinger’s Cloud memes. After a social media blast, access returned, and the founder says he’s eyeing OpenID Connect (OIDC), a login standard that avoids long-term passwords, though he claims Google makes it needlessly hard.
The vibe? Spicy and suspicious. Jokes about spinning the ToS Wheel collided with real fear: if a platform can flip the off switch without telling you why, maybe don’t build your business on it.
Key Points
- •SSLMate’s Google Cloud account was suspended three times for varying stated reasons, including policy and terms of service violations.
- •SSLMate uses per-customer service accounts and impersonation to access Cloud DNS and Cloud Domains, following Google’s documentation.
- •Google did not provide clear explanations or email notifications for suspensions, complicating remediation.
- •A health check later detected broad integration failures; subsequent restorations were faster when required information was prepared.
- •Ayer proposes OIDC as a potential workaround but describes its setup as unnecessarily complex.