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Ask Slashdot: Getting an Uncooperative Website To Delete One's Account?

Posted by timothy on from the if-you-reply-to-a-phantom-comment-do-you-exist? dept.

First time accepted submitter trentfoley writes "I've been trying to clean up my digital life (insert joke about having a life) and have run into a situation I fear is too common. Many social websites, nextdoor.com in particular, do not allow a user to delete the account they created. In the case of nextdoor.com, their privacy policy makes it clear that the user owns all of their data. If this is true, I should have the right to destroy that data. These lines of thought brought to mind the recent privacy defeat in Europe. Does the defeat of the EU's Right-to-be-Forgotten legislation bring a practical end to this debate?" I've read complaints today from Nextdoor.com users who say their data was sold, too.

3 of 171 comments (clear)

  1. bit of a tricky question with forums by Trepidity · · Score: 5, Informative

    Discussion lists traditionally don't give you a right to delete previous postings: Usenet and mailing list archives are forever. One rationale is simply technical inability (archives aren't controlled by a central authority), but there's also a sense that deleting miscellaneous posts from archives fragments the record of past conversations.

    So, Nextdoor has forums and discussions. It seems fair to me that they don't retroactively delete posts from those. Therefore they need to maintain some kind of attribution to the now-deleted account. So they can't fully delete the account, in the sense of wiping any traces, but they could just make it a non-operable "deactivated" account that still has the posts attributed, but can't be used anymore. They might agree to hide the profile in this case, as well. Turns out, that is precisely what they do support.

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    10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
  2. Re:call them by lister+king+of+smeg · · Score: 5, Informative

    Common advice for getting that big social networking site to respond to requests is to mail a paper letter to their HQ, possibly attn: legal affairs. Apparently the success rate is very high.

    another good way is if there is a place to put age set is as under 12 many will delete it immediately due to law concerning keeping data about children.

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    ---Saying gnome 3 is better than windows 8 not so much a compliment as it is damning with light praise.
  3. Re:call them by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    FYI:

    Entity Name: NEXTDOOR.COM, INC.
    Entity Number: C3063398
    Date Filed: 01/24/2008
    Status: ACTIVE
    Jurisdiction: DELAWARE
    Entity Address: 101 SPEAR STREET SUITE 230
    Entity City, State, Zip: SAN FRANCISCO CA 94105
    Agent for Service of Process: WILSON CHAN
    Agent Address: 101 SPEAR ST STE 230
    Agent City, State, Zip: SAN FRANCISCO CA 94105