cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
Announcements
We are making some updates so the Community might be down for a few hours on Monday the 11th of November. Apologies for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience. You can find out more here.

Create, upload, and share

Find help to solve issues with creating, uploading, and sharing files and folders in Dropbox. Get support and advice from the Dropbox Community.

cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Shared folder's owner is an unknown person that now owns my shared folder.

Shared folder's owner is an unknown person that now owns my shared folder.

xorg
New member | Level 2

I have a folder that i *know* i created as it is my company name, but someone else appears to own it.  I emailed the account that is listed and got a "mailbox full" from their email server.

 

They seem to have backed up 4.5 GB to this folder... i can't get rid of it.  What's going on?  How can they own my folder?  

 

They have no files there, but there is the backup that I mentioned.

4 Replies 4

Megan
Dropbox Staff

Hey @xorg, thanks for posting here! 

 

A shared folder can only change ownership if the person that created it passed it on to another member. If this didn't happen, then the folder was most likely created by someone else. 

 

What is the end goal here? Do you wish to remove the folder, or simply change its ownership? 

 

Let me know more! 


Megan
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, give it a Like below to let us know.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Need help with something else? Ask me a question!
:pushpin: Find Tips & Tricks Discover more ways to use Dropbox here!
:arrows_counterclockwise: Interested in Community Groups? Click here to join!

xorg
New member | Level 2
The intent is to have my Dropbox back. I wild just abandon it, but with some earned space there, I'm not crazy about that approach. There is nothing in that folder but their backup set that has taken up 99pct of my space.

Walter
Dropbox Staff

Are you getting any particular errors when trying to delete files from the folder or the other member @xorg?

 

If you do, I'd appreciate a screenshot so that we can have a visual too.

 

Have you considered copying any files you need from the folder into another folder that you own and then leaving the original shared folder?


Walter
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, give it a Like below to let us know.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Need help with something else? Ask me a question!
:pushpin: Find Tips & Tricks Discover more ways to use Dropbox here!
:arrows_counterclockwise: Interested in Community Groups? Click here to join

JohnnyDogman
Collaborator | Level 8

Hi xorg,

That sounds really frustrating. Here’s what might be happening and what you can do:

 

Folder Ownership: If someone else is listed as the owner, it’s possible the folder was accidentally shared with you or you were added to a folder they created. This could happen if you were given edit permissions and it appears in your Dropbox.

 

Check Sharing Permissions:

Go to Dropbox.com, find the folder in question, and click on Share.
Review the list of people with access. If you don’t own the folder, their name will be listed as the owner.

Leave the Shared Folder:

If you no longer want access, you can click Remove My Access from the folder settings, which will remove the folder from your account and free up space.

 

JD

Need more support?
Who's talking

Top contributors to this post

  • User avatar
    JohnnyDogman Collaborator | Level 8
  • User avatar
    Walter Dropbox Staff
  • User avatar
    xorg New member | Level 2
  • User avatar
    Megan Dropbox Staff
What do Dropbox user levels mean?