( CNN ) -- Yahoo has announced a plan to `` recycle '' old e-mail addresses , a move meant to free up accounts for folks who want them but that has sparked privacy concerns . In a blog post , senior vice president Jay Rossiter announced that Yahoo e-mail accounts that have been dormant for more than a year will be reset so that active users can have access to them . `` If you 're like me , you want a Yahoo ! ID that 's short , sweet , and memorable like albert @ yahoo.com instead of albert9330399 @ yahoo.com , '' he wrote . The one-year period will officially begin July 15 , when users can `` claim '' a dormant account name . They 'll find out in mid-August if they got the account they wanted . It 's clearly an effort by Yahoo , which has been working to redefine and rejuvenate itself under new CEO Marissa Mayer , to re-engage older users and reward active ones . But it has security experts nervous . Security analyst Graham Cluley does n't mince words . `` In short : as an idea it sucks , and it shows Yahoo 's lack of respect to customers who created accounts with them in years gone by , '' Cluley wrote Wednesday . Cluley lists several scenarios where the plan could backfire . They include situations in which a user has another primary e-mail account , but has given their Yahoo address as a backup in case of security situations , lost passwords and the like . He said the move appears to be `` an underhanded way to get people to re-engage with the site '' and that people who may not actively use their Yahoo mail , but use it to store old messages and other documents , could lose them without ever realizing it . Mat Honan of CNN content partner Wired , himself the recent victim of a high-profile hack , called the move `` a spectacularly bad idea . '' In the wake of such complaints , Yahoo released a followup statement saying it 's sure the transition can be made without compromising security . `` We 're committed and confident in our ability to do this in a way that 's safe , secure and protects our users ' data , '' the company said . The vast majority of inactive Yahoo IDs do n't have a mailbox associated with them , the company said , and any personal data associated with the accounts will be deleted . During a 30-day deactivation period , bounce-back e-mails will alert senders that the deactivated account no longer exists and Yahoo will unsubscribe those accounts from newsletters , commercial e-mail alerts and the like . Businesses , financial institutions , social networks and other e-mail providers will be sent notifications about e-mail addresses that have been deactivated . See also : Behind Yahoo 's Tumblr gamble .
Yahoo will `` recycle '' dormant account names and e-mail addresses . The move is meant to free up attractive IDs for active users . Security experts fear this could jeopardize privacy . " Comment: I'm not sure if you're asking about the email address, but it's a bit of an issue with some people who use their real name on social media sites ( e.g. face@@ the transition will be safe .