Delete or Deactivate Your Facebook Account
Posted on May 19, 2010 at 6:30 am
Back in the day, Facebook was the bomb. Those of us who were lucky enough to find it and sign up for Facebook accounts when it first started, got to enjoy a cool new website for staying in touch with our college friends.
Now, Facebook has become much more than just your basic social networking site. Many people may want to due away with their Facebook accounts all together.
As fast as Facebook has gained popularity, it’s not difficult to understand why it has evolved so much. However, those same college kids who started Facebook now have parents with Facebook accounts, and there are even police departments with Facebook accounts, which many have said they use for arresting people (not a cool way to bust college parties, officers).
If you have a crazy Facebook profile, it is also said that an employer or potential employer might scout that. Being a top 5 website in the world also means that you’re a target.
Thus, things like hackers with fake accounts have even occurred. Games have slowly taken over, and there are so many shady Facebook apps out there that many people don’t even use Facebook at all.
All of these reasons have slowly but surely tainted Facebook, but the real low of Facebook is still yet to be mentioned… The privacy policy. Facebook has perhaps the most questionable and critically bashed privacy policy of any website to date.
If you no longer want to be a member of Facebook, you can choose to deactivate your account. Here is how you do it:
Deactivating your Facebook account removes you from listings, but Facebook keeps your information in case you want to restore the account at a later date.
- Navigate on over to the Facebook homepage.
- Login to your account.
- Click the Account button located in the upper right hand side of the screen, and select Account Settings from the drop down menu.
- Scroll down toward the bottom of the page, and you should see a link titled Deactivate Account. Click it.
- Optionally, you can type a further explanation for cancelling your account.
- On the next screen, select a reason for Deactivating, and consider checking the option to Opt out of receiving future emails.
- Click the Deactivate My Account button and say goodbye to the bad guy.
Deleting A Facebook Account Permanently
- Navigate over to the Privacy Policy page.
- Scroll down to section 7. It is titled: 7. How You Can Change or Remove Information.
- Locate the subsection Deactivating or Deleting Your Account.
- Click the link to the Help page.
- Confirm that you want to delete your account by clicking the Submit button.
» Filed Under Computer Tips
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As I undestand it, just deleting your account doesn’t take the information off Facebook’s servers. I’ve read that you have to individually delete each item (i.e. each picture, each message, etc.) before deleting the account.
I don’t know if this is definitely correct but given Facebook’s often questioned privacy practices, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to find it is. I’ve read that they use the content on one’s site to build the mailing lists they sell and so your content, even when the account is closed, would still have value to them.
John
Yeah Facebook is probably gonna take over the world if Google doesn’t do it first. (sorta joking)
Anyway, I am an Intern at Entrustet.com, It is a free online service company that provides people with an easy way to pass on their digital assets (Facebook, Yahoo, Photosharing, etc., accounts) to their heirs when they die. We have been compiling a list of how to deal with accounts of those who have passed. We are continuing to update with more companies.
Mind sharing your thoughts with us?
blog.entrustet.com/digital-executor-toolbox/
DT