Remember to Remove and Unlink Your Accounts Before Uninstalling the App
Removing an app from your smartphone takes a matter of seconds, but you need to do more than just uninstall the app if you’re trying to delete your data or prevent it from accessing other accounts – which some apps keep doing long after they’re gone. your phone . To prevent this, make sure you unlink / unlink your account and any data it may contain before uninstalling the app. Here are some tips to help you completely ditch the apps you no longer want to use.
Delete unnecessary personal data
Deleting your data before deleting your account and uninstalling the app has become less of a requirement in light of recent data privacy legislative changes around the world, but it’s still important to double check if you’re missing out on the fine print.
While this is rare, some businesses retain personal data even after you have deleted your account, especially if your app account and “identity” in the service are handled separately – for example, if you sign in with your Google or Facebook accounts and these two services communicate with each other .
Take a look at how your data is collected and stored by the app to see if more action is needed.
- Look in the app for a menu labeled “privacy,” “security,” or “account,” and dig in and look for options to delete “account information,” “saved personal data,” “usage history,” or how.
- You should also revoke the app’s access to any associated accounts if necessary. Some services were caught accessing Gmail or Facebook, even after users deleted their accounts or app. You will need to sign in to the linked account (s) and check your settings to find out which apps Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc. are sharing and delete the ones you no longer use.
Removing your account
Once you have deleted your details and / or confirmed that they will no longer have access to other accounts, you can now delete your app account. Again, these steps will vary from application to application, but you can probably find an option by digging into the application’s settings. Here are some suggestions:
- First, look at your “account” or “privacy” settings.
- Always go through all the menus and read any available options or links – some apps like to make the uninstall option less obvious.
- Watch out for additional menus or sidebars where other settings might be hidden.
- If you check every menu in the app and still can’t find it, try logging into your desktop account (if available) and see if the option exists there.
- A quick internet search will also help you find the removal tools you need.
- Special Note: If you are trying to leave a financial institution or stop providing services such as phone or internet coverage, you will need to call and / or meet in person and follow the appropriate cancellation steps in order to cancel your account.
When you’ve learned how to delete your account, be sure to read all the steps carefully. Make sure all options to delete your data or revoke access to linked accounts are properly enabled, and be sure to read any notes or cautions about additional steps you may need to confirm deletion of your account. Only complete the deletion of your account when you are absolutely sure that your data will be deleted and there is no connection with other services that you use.
Once your data is wiped and your account is deleted, you can now go ahead and remove the app from your phone.