Inactive account deletion: Difference between revisions
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*Many accounts and contents that were created or owned by now-deceased users are likely affected under such policies. This could mean that immense amounts of valuable or historical significant contents will be lost over time. In some jurisdictions, some companies may allow those with a durable power of attourney, or executors to access accounts. Others, such as Microsoft in the United States require executors to get a court order in order to access a decedents account. | *Many accounts and contents that were created or owned by now-deceased users are likely affected under such policies. This could mean that immense amounts of valuable or historical significant contents will be lost over time. In some jurisdictions, some companies may allow those with a durable power of attourney, or executors to access accounts. Others, such as Microsoft in the United States require executors to get a court order in order to access a decedents account. | ||
*Ultimately, in both the short and long term, such policies will cause serious erosion of historical integrity, which is especially paramount as in the era of deepfakes, lies and misinformation are just as likely as to arise from the absence of data than the presence of it. The erosion of historical integrity could cause human societies to be vulnerable to "historical context attacks".<ref>https://www.fastcompany.com/90549441/how-to-prevent-deepfakes | *Ultimately, in both the short and long term, such policies will cause serious erosion of historical integrity, which is especially paramount as in the era of deepfakes, lies and misinformation are just as likely as to arise from the absence of data than the presence of it. The erosion of historical integrity could cause human societies to be vulnerable to "historical context attacks".<ref>{{cite web |first=Edwards |last=Benj |title=AI threatens to rewrite history. Here’s how to protect it |date=3 Oct 2020 |website=Fast Company |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90549441/how-to-prevent-deepfakes |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20201003060527/https://www.fastcompany.com/90549441/how-to-prevent-deepfakes |archive-date=2020-10-03}}</ref> | ||
==Examples== | ==Examples== | ||
*[[Discord]] has a deletion policy on inactive accounts in which accounts that are not used for 2 years or more may be scheduled to be deleted. Before the deletion of the inactive account, users may get an email or text message warning that their account is scheduled to be deleted.<ref>https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/5106714856215-Inactive-Account-Deletion | *[[Discord]] has a deletion policy on inactive accounts in which accounts that are not used for 2 years or more may be scheduled to be deleted. Before the deletion of the inactive account, users may get an email or text message warning that their account is scheduled to be deleted.<ref>{{cite web |title=Inactive Account Deletion |author=Librarian |date=14 Jun 2023 |website=[[Discord]] Support |url=https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/5106714856215-Inactive-Account-Deletion |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260210025748/https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/5106714856215-Inactive-Account-Deletion |archive-date=2026-02-10}}</ref> | ||
*[[Google]] has deleted inactive accounts, often citing 'privacy reasons' as a reason for doing it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barker |first=Shane |title=Google's Inactive Account Deletion policy: What You Need To Know |url=https://expertbeacon.com/googles-inactive-account-deletion-policy-what-you-need-to-know/ | | *[[Google]] has deleted inactive accounts, often citing 'privacy reasons' as a reason for doing it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barker |first=Shane |title=Google's Inactive Account Deletion policy: What You Need To Know |url=https://expertbeacon.com/googles-inactive-account-deletion-policy-what-you-need-to-know/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260405154945/https://expertbeacon.com/googles-inactive-account-deletion-policy-what-you-need-to-know/ |archive-date=5 Apr 2026 |access-date=29 Oct 2025 |website=Expert beacon}}</ref> The rationale has been ridiculed with some comparing it to a hypothetical scenario where a bank should be burned down if it is not secure against robbers.<ref>{{cite web |first=Jordan |last=Novet |title=Google’s plan to purge inactive accounts isn’t sitting well with some users |website=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/19/google-faces-criticism-of-plan-to-purge-inactive-accounts.html |url-status=live |date=19 Aug 2023 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250831223936/https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/19/google-faces-criticism-of-plan-to-purge-inactive-accounts.html |archive-date=2025-08-31}}</ref> | ||
*[[Microsoft]] has a deletion policy on inactive accounts in which accounts that are not used for 2 years or more may be scheduled to be deleted. Any account that has been locked for more than two years will also be considered "inactive" and will be closed. Before the deletion of the inactive account, users may get an email or text message warning that their account is scheduled to be deleted.<ref>{{cite web |title=Microsoft account activity policy |website=Microsoft Support |date=1 Jul 2019 |url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/microsoft-account-activity-policy-7c0a9fa7-0982-b7c6-fd72-df852b63699f |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260210005823/https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/microsoft-account-activity-policy-7c0a9fa7-0982-b7c6-fd72-df852b63699f |archive-date=2026-02-10}}</ref> | |||
*[[ | *[[Protonmail]] announced a policy in 2022 which entails the deletion of inactive accounts, resulting in a major controversy where many users voice their concerns on the decision.<ref>{{cite web |author=socookre |website=[[Reddit]] |title=Protonmail's dormant policy is now in effect. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/u3ejjp/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |url-status=live |date=14 Apr 2022 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241218103805/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/u3ejjp/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |archive-date=2024-12-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=socookre |website=[[Reddit]] |title=Protonmail's dormant policy is now in effect. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/u3g406/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |url-status=live |date=14 Apr 2022 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20221016093816/https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/u3g406/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |archive-date=2022-10-16}}</ref> In response to these concerns, Protonmail added an exemption where the inactive account policy would not apply to any accounts which had premium subscriptions at one point, although the exemption was revoked as of 2024. Protonmail accounts that were created before April 9, 2024 has a two year grace period before being subjected to the policy, as opposed to one year for newer accounts.<ref>{{cite web |author=ProtonMail |website=[[Reddit]] |date=26 Apr 2022 |title=Update to our inactive account policy |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/uca15y/update_to_our_inactive_account_policy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250402195858/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/uca15y/update_to_our_inactive_account_policy/ |archive-date=2025-04-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ghacks.net/2022/04/27/protonmail-will-not-delete-inactive-user-accounts-for-former-premium-subscribers/ |author=Ashwin |date=27 Apr 2022 |title=ProtonMail will not delete user accounts for inactivity if the user had paid for a subscription at any point |website=ghacks |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250316094922/https://www.ghacks.net/2022/04/27/protonmail-will-not-delete-inactive-user-accounts-for-former-premium-subscribers/ |archive-date=2025-03-16}}</ref><ref name="proton-inactive">{{cite web |url=https://proton.me/support/inactive-accounts |website=[[Proton]] |title=Inactive accounts |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260524033731/https://proton.me/support/inactive-accounts |archive-date=2026-05-24}}</ref> In some cases users have reported success in recovering their inactive accounts after being locked under the policy.<ref>{{cite web |author=mozahzah |title=Account is no longer available due to inactivity |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1i7gbd7/account_is_no_longer_available_due_to_inactivity/ |date=22 Jan 2025 |website=[[Reddit]] |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260222223819/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1i7gbd7/account_is_no_longer_available_due_to_inactivity/ |archive-date=2026-02-22}}</ref> As of 2025 many users continue to voice their concerns regarding the inactive account policy, while advocating for sensible measures such as deleting only the contents in the inactive accounts while sparing the accounts themselves.<ref>{{cite web |website=Proton Uservoice |title=Inactive account policy - keep account when deleting data |author=Fibonacci |date=10 Apr 2024 |url=https://protonmail.uservoice.com/forums/945460-general-ideas/suggestions/48235556-inactive-account-policy-keep-account-when-deleti |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251117234124/https://protonmail.uservoice.com/forums/945460-general-ideas/suggestions/48235556-inactive-account-policy-keep-account-when-deleti |archive-date=2025-11-17}}</ref><ref name="proton-inactive" /> | ||
*Trello, which is owned by Atlassian, has a "Dormant Trello account policy" which said that accounts that are not logged in for more than two years could be subjected to deletions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dormant Trello account policy |website=Atlassian Support |url=https://support.atlassian.com/trello/docs/dormant-trello-account-policy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260126175853/https://support.atlassian.com/trello/docs/dormant-trello-account-policy/ |archive-date=2026-01-26}}</ref> | |||
*Tuta, formerly known as Tutanota, an email service based in Germany, deletes inactive free accounts after six months of inactivity, although unlike Protonmail, they explicitly allow the possibility of username revival and recovery provided that the user has the correct credentials and creates a paid email account where the revived username would be used as an alias.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tuta.com/support/security |title=Security and Privacy |url-status=live |website=Tuta |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260130172956/https://tuta.com/support/security |archive-date=2026-01-30}}</ref> | |||
*[[Twitch]] had implemented deletions of accounts that are not logged in for long periods while reclaiming their usernames in 2017 at least once.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://blog.twitch.tv/en/2017/01/06/username-rename-recycling-policy-update-882431cb966b/ |title=Username Rename & Recycling Policy Update |first=Emily |last=Halpin |date=6 Jan 2017 |website=[[Twitch]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190926203423/https://blog.twitch.tv/en/2017/01/06/username-rename-recycling-policy-update-882431cb966b/ |archive-date=2019-09-26}}</ref> | |||
*[[X Corp|X]], formerly known as Twitter, had in 2023 announced its intentions to delete inactive accounts, although following public backlash it had retracted the decision, saying that inactive accounts would be archived instead while their handles would be freed. Despite the retraction, there are at least one anecdotal reports which alleged X had deleted suspended accounts that are not logged in for a long time.<ref>{{cite web |title=Twitter to remove idle accounts, archive them | |||
|first=Akash |last=Sriram |first2=Shinjini |last2=Ganguli |date=9 May 2023 |url=https://www.reuters.com/technology/twitter-remove-inactive-accounts-2023-05-08/ |url-status=live |website=Reuters |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250526024527/https://www.reuters.com/technology/twitter-remove-inactive-accounts-2023-05-08/ |archive-date=2025-05-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Tom |last=Gerken |title=Twitter plans to remove and archive inactive accounts |date=9 May 2023 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-65533014 |website=BBC |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250621004808/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-65533014 |archive-date=2025-06-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Grantham-Philips |last=Wyatte |title=Twitter is purging inactive accounts including people who have died, angering those still grieving |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/twitter-is-purging-inactive-accounts-including-people-who-have-died-angering-those-still-grieving |url-status=live |date=17 May 2023 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260125105022/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/twitter-is-purging-inactive-accounts-including-people-who-have-died-angering-those-still-grieving |archive-date=2026-01-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=cyberanakinvader |website=[[Reddit]] |date=8 Jun 2024 |title=Twitter is silently deleting some suspended accounts which has not been logged in for some time. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/1db1sru/twitter_is_silently_deleting_some_suspended/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260111213116/https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/1db1sru/twitter_is_silently_deleting_some_suspended/ |archive-date=2026-01-11}}</ref> | |||
==Proposed solutions== | |||
Partly in response to corporate arguments about financial costs that justify harsh inactive account deletion policies, the Pirate Parties International website had published opinion articles advocating for the creation of a Digital Legacies Treaty in which some large email and social media services will be treated as effective public utilities akin to healthcare and emergency services, as the financial costs required for the services to maintain access to user data would become a government expense, akin to a military defense budget. The Pirate Parties International also advocated for structured protocols for the services to follow if they decide to shutter their platforms, which can include bailout, takeover by another platforms, or donation of archival data to archival institutions such as the National Diet Library of Japan, the Bibliothèque nationale of France, and the National Archives of the USA.<ref>{{Cite web |author=KG |title=The Case for a Digital Legacies Treaty |url=https://pp-international.net/2026/02/digitallegacies/ |website=Pirate Parties International |date=10 Feb 2026 |access-date=1 Jun 2026 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260306000633/https://pp-international.net/2026/02/digitallegacies/ |archive-date=6 Mar 2026}}</ref> | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||