The trouble is you think that you are in possession of a ham sandwich that Google is taking away when in reality you’ve left your ham sandwich in Google’s fridge and they are sick of storing the obviously-abandoned sandwich for you.
See also: https://xkcd.com/1150/
Also contrary to your insinuation that I'm an entitled jerk trying to rip off a trillion dollar company, I de-Googled a long time ago. Because I know they're the company that lets their clueless robots brand desperate parents trying to cure their children as child predators, punishes them by taking away the key to their entire digital lives, and worse, doubles down and continues to defame them when proven wrong [1].
But it's not fair to fault people who still depend on Google. Lack of informed consent, reinforced by dark patterns and justified with "user-friendliness" BS is what drew people in. Peer pressure also forces people to create accounts when they otherwise wouldn't have. I just have zero tolerance for corporate cheerleaders who justify this sort of thing by blaming the victim in the most condescending way possible.
“Why do you need this account you’ve abandoned for a year” is a different question than “why does Google need your phone number”. I have no doubt Google loves to collect phone numbers for several reasons, none of them altruistic.
> contrary to your insinuation … I de-Googled a long time ago
You’re grasping at stuff to be mad about.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_you
> the most condescending way possible
Every single reply you’ve made in this thread has been condescending and sarcastic. You’re projecting your self righteousness onto others.