So you washed your sheets and vacuumed under the couch in the name of spring cleaning. But what about your online junk?
Apps that delight, inform and keep you connected earn space in your digital space. But if you haven’t used your Facebook account in years, or if you want to permanently take some time back from doomscrolling, you might want to consider getting rid of some accounts once and for all. Of course, like other services that take advantage of you – in this case off your user information † social media and other online platforms can make breaking ties difficult. Here’s a guide to that elusive delete button for when you’ve made up your mind.
In Firefox, you can restrict the social media giant that tracks your online activity via the Facebook Container Extension without deleting your Facebook account. Although, *wildly gesturing to news headlines from the past few years*, we don’t blame you if you want to stop using the app for good. You may even have your Facebook account deactivated before and found that you can log back in right away. Here’s how you can actually delete Facebook through the mobile app:
- Find the menu icon bottom right.
- Scroll all the way down.
- From there go to settings & privacy † personal and account information † account ownership and management † deactivate and delete†
- Select Remove Accountthen continue Remove Account † proceed to delete account † Remove Account†
- Enter your password, press Get on and click Remove Account† Facebook will start deleting your account within 30 days, just make sure you don’t log in earlier.
How to remove Facebook from your browser:
- Find the account icon (it looks like an inverted triangle in the top right corner).
- From there go to settings & privacy † settings † your Facebook information † deactivate and delete†
- Select Remove Accountthen continue with Remove Account † Remove Account † Confirm deletion†
According to Facebook, it can take up to 90 days to delete everything you’ve posted. Also, keep in mind that the company says it may keep copies of your data in “backup storage” after that period for recovery in some cases, such as software bugs and legal issues.
More information from Facebook
So you have decided to shut down your Instagram account. You may want to clean up your digital space from the parent company, Meta. Maybe you’re tired of uninstalling the app just to reinstall it later. Whatever your reason, here is how to delete your Instagram:
- Visit https://instagram.com/accounts/remove/request/permanent and log in, if you are not already logged in.
- You will see a question about why you want to delete your account. Choose an option from the drop-down menu.
- Please re-enter your password.
- click on remove [username]†
- If prompted, to confirm that you want to delete your account.
- You will see a page stating that your account will be deleted after one month. You can log in earlier if you choose to keep your account.
More information from Instagram
Whether you migrated to another similar social media platform, or have just outgrown it, you might be tempted to just delete the Snapchat app from your phone and get started with it. But you also want to clean up your data. Here’s how to delete your Snapchat account from an iOS app:
- Click on the profile icon top left, then the settings icon top right.
- Scroll all the way down and press Remove Account†
- Then enter your password Get on† Your account will be deleted within 30 days.
Here’s how to delete your Snapchat account from your browser:
More information from Snapchat
Twitter can be a wealth of information. It can also enable endless doom scrolling. If you’d rather get your news elsewhere and debate the latest hot take with people, here’s how to delete your Twitter account from a browser:
- Once you are logged in, click on Lake on the left side of your Twitter homepage.
- click on settings & privacy † your account † Deactivate your account † deactivate†
- Enter your password and press to confirm†
Here’s how to remove your Twitter account from the app:
- Click on the profile icon and then go to settings and privacy † your account † deactivate your account † deactivate†
- Enter your password.
Google’s share of the global search market is about 85%† While the tech giant will likely continue to play a huge role in our lives, from searches to email to our calendars, we can delete inactive or unnecessary Google accounts. Here’s how to do that:
Amazon has had quite a few controversies, especially over data collection and how the retail giant treats its employees† If you’ve decided that easy access and fast deliveries aren’t worth the price anymore, here’s how to delete your Amazon account:
- Go to https://www.amazon.com/privacy/data-deletion†
- Make sure to read which Amazon services you can’t access after deleting your account.
- Check ‘Yes, I want to permanently close my Amazon account and delete my data’.
- Touch close my account†
- Check your text messages or emails for a notification from Amazon.
- Click on the confirm account closure clutch.
- Enter your password.
Payment app Venmo has made it easier to split bills and pay for things without cash. But if you’ve decided to do it another way, you’ll want to delete your account and your banking information. You must first transfer the money in your Venmo account to your bank account. Another option: return the money to the sender. If you have any outstanding transactions, you must address them before you can close your account. Once you’re done, here’s how to delete your Venmo account in your browser:
To close your Venmo account in the app, do the following:
- Click the at the bottom right person icon†
- Go to settings in the top right by clicking on the gear icon†
- click on account † Close Venmo Accountt > Get on † to confirm†
TikTok has become hugely popular, surpasses Twitter and Snapchat’s combined ad revenue in February. If you’ve tried the app and decided it’s not for you, here’s how to delete your TikTok account:
- In the app, click on the profile icon bottom right.
- Click on the three-line icon top right.
- click on settings and privacy † Manage account † Remove Account†
- Follow the directions.
Whether you want follow in the footsteps of Neil Young or already streaming music and podcasts through another service, it’s a good idea to delete your stagnant Spotify account. If you have a subscription, you must cancel it first. Once done, here’s how to delete your Spotify account.
With our lives so online, our digital space can become cluttered with inactive and unnecessary accounts – and forgetting them can be a security risk. While you’re off to a great start with our one-stop shop for online account deletion, it’s far from complete. So here’s a bonus tip: Sign up for Firefox Monitor. It warns you when your data is exposed in breaches, including on websites where you forgot to provide your information.
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