Facebook is one of the world's most popular communications platforms. Yet if you're wary about sharing too much personal data publicly, or don’t like the idea of Facebook tracking you, you may want a way out. Follow this step-by-step guide to temporarily deactivate or permanently delete your Facebook account. And get an anti-tracking app to help prevent Facebook and other apps that can track you from following you around online.
Whether you want to learn how to deactivate Facebook to take a break from digital social life or want to get rid of Facebook entirely, don't let your social media past come back to haunt you. This step-by-step guide shows you exactly how to deactivate or delete Facebook.
Before we begin, remember that deleting Facebook means removing your profile forever, while deactivating Facebook means pausing your account activity temporarily.
The fastest way to deactivate a Facebook page or suspend a Facebook account is by logging in to Facebook and navigating to the privacy settings for deleting or deactivating a Facebook account. Here, click the first option: Deactivate account.
You’ll be asked to re-enter your password before confirming the temporary deactivation. Once deactivation is confirmed, you can reactivate your Facebook account whenever you want. Be aware that even after you deactivate your Facebook account, your data could still be in the hands of data brokers.
Another way to deactivate your Facebook account on your computer or browser is to follow this step-by-step Facebook deactivation guide:
Sign into Facebook.
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner and select Settings & privacy.
Click Settings.
Click Privacy in the left panel, then click Your Facebook information.
Scroll to the last option and click Deactivation and deletion.
Confirm your choice, then click Continue to account deactivation.
Re-enter your Facebook password and click Continue to confirm deactivation.
Deactivating your Facebook account on the iPhone app will have the same effect as deactivating on desktop or browser. If you’re looking for how to delete a Facebook account on an iPhone app, skip down to the section on deleting your Facebook account.
Follow these step-by-step instructions for deactivation.
Open the Facebook app on your iPhone or iPad.
Tap the menu (three-lines), then tap Settings & Privacy.
Choose Settings > Access and control.
Tap Deactivation and deletion > Deactivate account. Re-enter your password to confirm deactivation.
To suspend your Facebook account on Android, go straight to the Facebook mobile app. It takes only a few steps to pause Facebook. Deactivating Facebook on your mobile phone could help you prevent a spoofing or social engineering scam.
Open the Facebook app on your Android phone.
Tap your profile picture, then select Settings & privacy.
Tap Settings > Access and control.
Select Deactivation and deletion > Deactivate account. Re-enter your password to confirm deactivation.
The trail you leave throughout your digital day can build up and give advertisers or snoops a lot of information to work with. The capabilities of online tracking, and the risk of being caught up in a data breach, makes limiting our digital trails ever more important. Whether you want to delete your Facebook account permanently or just want to tighten up your cybersecurity, these steps will get the job done.
Deleting a Facebook account on a computer is essentially the same as deactivating a Facebook account on a computer. The only difference is the final step, where you select to permanently delete your Facebook account instead of temporarily deactivating it.
Here's how to delete Facebook if you’re using a browser on a computer:
Open Facebook and log in.
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner, then select Settings & privacy.
Select Settings > Privacy > Your Facebook information.
Click Deactivation and deletion.
Confirm by selecting Delete account.
Click Continue to account deletion and re-enter your password.
These are the steps for how to delete a Facebook account using a browser on a PC or Mac. Remember: Once you delete your Facebook account you won't be able to log in to other websites using Facebook (which may not be a bad thing).
To delete a Facebook account on iPhone follow these steps. The process is the same as deactivating your Facebook on an iPhone, except for the final step where you’ll select delete instead of deactivate.
Here’s how to delete your Facebook account on an iPhone:
Open the Facebook app on your iPhone.
Tap the menu (three lines), and select Settings & Privacy.
Tap Settings > Access and control.
Select Deactivation and deletion and choose Delete account. Re-enter your password to confirm.
You can delete your Facebook account directly from your mobile device in a few easy steps. But, deleting the Facebook app doesn’t delete your account. You have to delete your Facebook account, then you can delete your Facebook app.
Here’s how to delete your Facebook account using the Android app:
Open the Facebook app on Android.
Tap the menu (three lines) and select Settings & Privacy.
Tap Settings > Access and control.
Tap Deactivation and deletion, then select Delete account.
Deactivating a Facebook account means removing it temporarily. Deleting a Facebook account means removing it permanently. You can temporarily deactivate Facebook and reactivate it again. If you delete Facebook, your data is wiped and cannot be restored.
Maybe you're tired of seeing fake news, annoyed with all the ad tracking, or simply want to stop oversharing on social media. Whatever the reason for putting a pause on your Facebook account, there are pros and cons to temporarily deactivating Facebook vs deleting it completely.
You can keep Facebook Messenger.
You can reactivate your Facebook account whenever you want without losing anything.
It’s a temporary way to hide your photos, friends, and posts.
Your personal data is not deleted.
Oculus products can’t be used unless you reactivate your account.
Once you reactivate, you’re again at risk of Facebook scams.
You never have to check your Facebook for data leaks again.
You don’t have to worry about whether Facebook listens to your private conversions.
You have more control over your personal data
All data tied to your inactive Facebook accounts is deleted too.
You can't change your mind. Rejoining means starting a completely new profile.
You may lose important photos and videos if you don’t back them up before deleting Facebook permanently.
Yes, you can deactivate Facebook and still have full access to Facebook Messenger. The trick is to not permanently delete your Facebook profile, but to select the option: Deactivate account. If you continue using Facebook Messenger, be sure you know how to change your privacy settings on Facebook, and periodically clear your Facebook cache to protect your privacy.
Yes, after you deactivate your Facebook account, simply log back in to reactive Facebook. You can also reactivate Facebook after deactivation by using your Facebook login to access another website. Deleted accounts can be recovered too, but only for 30 days after deletion.
If you don’t reactivate your deleted Facebook account within 30 days, you’ve permanently deleted Facebook and erased all your data. And if your reason for deleting or deactivating Facebook in the first place was because of annoying ads, you can just block ads on Facebook instead.
Privacy and data protection are often the main reasons people choose to delete or disable Facebook. But what if you didn’t have to make that choice? AVG AntiTrack lets everyone enjoy the freedom of their digital social life while helping to minimize their digital footprint. Try AntiTrack for free today to help keep your browsing activity private.
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