by The Computing Australia Group | Many online services and applications require an account set up to use them. Some services can be accessed through social media logins. However, having too many social media accounts may lead to data compromise, misuse or data loss. You might have accounts on many social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn etc. Some of them are created on the spur of the moment and maybe no more in use. Any such old and forgotten accounts that you are not using may have key information such as your personal data, credit card details, and more. Our IT helpdesk from Perth will help you understand why you should delete these unused accounts and how to do it.
Why should you delete your old accounts?
If you are reusing the passwords or not making your passwords strong enough, a hacker can easily use your old, stolen information to access other online accounts. Even if you are not reusing the passwords, still the personal data associated with your old, unused account can provide hackers with the answers to your online security questions on other websites.
It should be kept in mind that your data is not always going to remain with one company. When another company buys or the company merges with another company, that data will be transferred. From this, it is clear that it is necessary to close any old accounts that you no longer use to safeguard your privacy. The first thing to do is find the old accounts you do not want, deactivate or delete them, and save yourself from hackers.
So, how to delete your old social media accounts?
Here are the steps you need to follow to delete accounts of some of the most popular digital platforms.
To kill your Facebook account:
Click on the downward arrow in the top right of your account. Select “Settings & Privacy” and go to “Settings”. Then select “Your Facebook information” in the left sidebar and click “Deactivation and deletion”.
In the next window that opens, choose “Permanently Delete Account” and then click “Continue to account deletion”. Afterwards, click “Delete Account”, enter the password and click “Continue” to confirm.
To deactivate a Twitter account:
Click on More (three dots) icon and select “Settings and privacy”. Next, go to “Your Account”, select “Deactivate your account” and click “Deactivate”. Enter the password to confirm and click “Deactivate account” to complete the process.
After deactivating, if you don’t log in for the next 30 days, the account will get permanently deleted. So if you want to use the email ID or username, it’s best to change them before deactivating.
To delete your Instagram account:
You will need to login into your account that you want to delete from your browser since you cannot delete your account within the mobile app.
Once logged in, go to your profile icon and click on “Settings”. When the new window opens, scroll down and click on “Help”. Next select “Managing Your Account” from the sidebar in the Help Center window and click “Delete Your Account”. Then go to “How do I delete my Instagram account?” and click on the linked text “Delete Your Account”.
You can also reach this window by just clicking this Instagram link. Once the window opens, you’ve to select a reason for deleting your account from the drop-down menu. Then enter your password and click on “Permanently delete my account” to confirm the deletion.
To delete your LinkedIn account:
Go to “Settings & Privacy” in the Accounts menu.
Afterwards, click “Account preferences” and scroll down to the Account Management section. Now choose “Closing Account”, and you’ll be asked to give a reason why you’re closing the account. Select the appropriate reason and then click “Next”. Then enter the password, check the unsubscribe box and click “Close account” to complete.
Need to delete your Google Account. Here’s how you can do it.
To remove your old Google account:
Go to myaccount.google.com., click Data and personalization, Scroll and go to “Download, delete, or make a plan for your data”. Then select Delete a service or your account and click Delete your account.
What to do if you can’t delete an account?
For certain websites, the service will automatically delete your old account for inactivity or nonexistence of service. However, some services do not provide any option to delete your old social media accounts. In that case, here are some tips to protect your data.- Right-click on the Windows icon on the Start menu
- From the list, select Device Manager
These steps will prevent cybercriminals from obtaining your information even when they succeed in hacking your account.
Why not take expert support to delete your unused social media accounts? Contact us or email us at helpdesk@computingaustralia.group. Our IT helpdesk team is available 24/7 to help you with any IT related problems and also help you protect your business from data breaches.
Jargon Buster
Deactivate – unlike deleting, deactivating allows you to reactivate your account whenever you want. Once your account is deactivated, people can’t see your timeline or find your account.
Data breach – a cyber attack in which information is stolen or taken from a system without the owner’s knowledge.
