Users reported that it was impossible to delete all their
information from the site, but Facebook says that total deletion is
now possible.
There was an outcry when users discovered that they could leave
Facebook, but that their details would remain on Facebook servers.
The company said that this is in case users changed their minds and
wanted to reactivate accounts.
Facebook groups even emerged to publicise the problem and ways
users could work around it.
Facebook, though, now says that it has introduced a method by which
a user can permanently delete all of their information.
"If you deactivate your account, your profile and all
information associated with it are immediately made inaccessible to
other Facebook users," says Facebook's privacy guidelines.
"However, we do save your profile information (friends, photos,
interests, etc.), so if you want to reactivate at some point, your
account will look just the way it did when you deactivated."
"If you do not think you will use Facebook again and would like
your account deleted, we can take care of this for you," it
said.
Until last week total deletion was not possible. There have even
been some hiccups with the new system, but Facebook told the New
York Times that they were fixed at the weekend.
The UK's Information Commissioner has previously said that he
would investigate one British user's case after the user complained
about being unable to delete his account.
"Many people are posting content on social networking sites
without thinking about the electronic footprint they leave behind,"
the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) told The Register last
November.
"[Companies] should ensure that personal information is not
retained for longer than necessary especially when the information
relates to a person who no longer uses the site. Organisations can
ensure personal information is effectively protected by complying
with the principles of the Data Protection Act," said the
statement.
The company also faced user revolt over an advertising system
introduced late last year which told your online 'friends' about
purchases you made on advertising partner websites. Called Beacon,
the system was withdrawn by Facebook in December after a storm of
protest.
