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The thing is, I want my account/profile removed. Forever.

In the page for that purpose I am told it would be immediate if I had never voted or posted more than once. Otherwise I have to fill a form???? Why? What for? Already did it, what now?

It would be sooooo much simpler to enable the "delete" button for everybody. Not doing so in many cases is adding insult to injury.

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  • 3
    The best way to find out why is probably to use the same contact form that you'd use to request account deletion. May 22, 2017 at 12:54
  • @DavidFoerster As I said I already did it. Now what? Nothing changed, ḿ still here (which is good in a way because now I have time to delete everything).
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 12:57
  • @DavidFoerster Minutes ago, My point is exactly that: It should be immediate for everybody regardless of rep.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 13:04
  • Fair enough. Here's some advice: for reasons related to organisational politics it's going to be hard to find support for change in a group which you're attempting to leave. May 22, 2017 at 13:06
  • Very funny... But true, I give you that.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 13:09
  • 2
    @Alban Account deletions sent in by that contact form go to the SE Community Managers - they're very busy and there's no guarantee for immediate reply. Even if we go in as moderators, it'll queue for deletion but not immediately delete. Patience is a virtue, if you just don't care anymore you can just not visit the site and can leave and it'll eventually be handled, no need to lurk around just waiting for the deletion.
    – Thomas Ward Mod
    May 22, 2017 at 13:14
  • @ThomasWard The point was/is it should be immediate, there should be be a delete button available for everybody. But instead of answering why and/or whether you agree or not, all you've been doing is "ẗrowing the rule book" at me. Thanks but no thanks.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 13:57
  • Also just noticed that 1. can't delete accepted answers (understandable but immoral) and 2. there's a daily cap even for deleting own comments??? FFS, who designed this site needs some meds.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 13:59
  • When you post here, you are giving up the content you posted, you do not own what you post she does. That will also be the reason it takes time to close an account, your name will be removed from any posts you made but they will stay.
    – Mark Kirby
    May 22, 2017 at 14:05
  • @MarkKirby FYI, you're talking with an EU/US copyright law expert and a (modest) author. That's why I said "understandable but immoral". She also owns non-accepted answers and comments but those can be deleted by the authors. Enforcing that right only when a third-party (other user) that has nothing to do with the content clicks a button is what makes it immoral. For the rest I already accepted the answer, which makes sense and it makes sense and I was stupid for not thinking about that possibility.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 14:28
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    @Alban for what it's worth, you can find the specifics of the license you accept when posting on these sites here: stackexchange.com/legal. When it comes to deleting content, the relevant section is section 3: You agree that all Subscriber Content that You contribute to the Network is perpetually and irrevocably licensed to Stack Exchange under the Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike license. You grant Stack Exchange the perpetual and irrevocable right and license to use [ . . . ] even if such Subscriber Content has been contributed and subsequently removed by You
    – terdon
    May 22, 2017 at 15:01
  • @terdon I'm sure you understand the differences between illegal (I never said it was) and immoral (reasons above). Oh, but perhaps you ddn grasp the nuances just like it seems you have a poor grasp of the differences between discussing/criticizing ideas and ad hominem. You aren't alone unfortunately, as many people nowadays confuses feelings with facts.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 15:35
  • Sorry you feel that way. I made no comment on whether it's legal or not, I only gave you the information so you can read the licensing agreement. My only intent was to provide information.
    – terdon
    May 22, 2017 at 15:39
  • @terdon The idea of me not knowing / not reading that before signing up is borderline insane but thank you anyway and nothing wrong with you, obviously, I mean, how could you know I'm such a detailed person? The idea is still insane though. BS is BS and it should be called by name.
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 15:47
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    I have no reason to doubt you have read the TOS. However, given the fact that you found them immoral (and it's your right to think so), I am wondering why you accepted them and decided to subscribe. You could've used the website by reading questions and answers without an account. May 22, 2017 at 21:55

1 Answer 1

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Put yourself in my shoes. You'd been a member for years, almost 3000 posts, hundreds of thousands of points of hard-earned reputation. Your account has got you work. It's something you value.

Then some scrot hacks your account. Clicks delete. Everything gone. How would you feel?

So instead, there's a process. You talk to a real person. They work out if you're really who you say you are, and instigate a deferred deletion. That gives your account 24 hours with a banner over the top, allowing you to cancel the deletion request.

This provides some protection from hackers, some protection against impulse. I can understand your misgivings —given your expressed intentions— but it's a feature and one I'm very happy exists.

The trade-off is it takes a little time to execute. A human has to be poked in the eye a sufficient number of times —or finish what they were doing— to get to your ticket. Ultimately, I don't see that as a problem because if you want to stop using the site, you only need close the tab and walk away. Having an account (in the process of deletion or not) isn't time sensitive.


I've seen morality pop up a few times since the question was originally asked. When you joined the site, you essentially agreed (per various terms of service, not a quote) to:

Do stuff to make the site and the internet a better place.

What's what SE is all about.

But a lot of people who want to leave attempt to take a vast number of their posts with them. These may be the accepted answer, or just another good answer, or comments that explained the context. Removing them removes a net good from the internet, running contrary to what you agreed to.

So again, the system balances what you want to do, and what is best for it. There might be very legitimate reasons to delete more than 10 comments, or answers, or whatever but chances are somebody is trying to wipe their account clean. Again, contrary to the rules.

Again, I this as a feature of the system but I can see how it might be surprising or frustrating. We could probably debate the morality of this at a very deep level for a very long time but it won't change the outcome.

My interest —to be very blunt— is protecting the site, not making you happy.

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  • Finally someone making sense!
    – user685242
    May 22, 2017 at 14:20
  • @Alban we all make sense :=D I wish such a feature was there. It would be a lot easier to catch Oli that way >:-D
    – Rinzwind
    May 23, 2017 at 6:44

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