Are your forgotten social media profiles putting you at risk?

Hooded figure using laptop with code background.

Forgotten social media accounts have become gold mines for cybercriminals, with the FBI now warning Americans about identity theft risks from abandoned online profiles.

Quick Takes

Deleting social media accounts doesn’t fully remove your personal information from the internet
Platforms often retain your data even after account deletion due to legal obligations
The FBI has issued warnings about scammers exploiting forgotten social media profiles
Experts recommend auditing privacy settings and terminating unused accounts

The Hidden Danger of Abandoned Social Media Accounts

Most Americans have created multiple social media accounts over the years, often abandoning older platforms as new ones emerge. What many don’t realize is that these forgotten digital footprints remain vulnerable to exploitation. According to recent warnings from the FBI, cybercriminals are increasingly targeting these abandoned profiles to harvest personal information for identity theft and fraud schemes. These dormant accounts often contain birthdays, phone numbers, addresses, and other sensitive details that can be pieced together to create comprehensive profiles for criminal use.

The threat is particularly concerning for older Americans who may have created accounts during the early days of social media platforms like MySpace, Friendster, or early versions of Facebook and Twitter, when privacy concerns were less prominent and security features were more limited. Many users from that era shared personal information freely, not understanding how that data might be exploited years later. Even if you haven’t logged into these accounts for a decade, your information remains accessible to those with malicious intent.

Why Deletion Isn’t Enough

Many Americans assume that deleting a social media account permanently removes their information from the internet. However, this common misconception leaves countless individuals vulnerable. When you delete an account, the platform may simply flag your profile as inactive while retaining all associated data in their systems. According to privacy experts, social media companies often maintain this information indefinitely, citing various legal obligations or internal policies that allow them to preserve user data long after accounts have been “deleted.”

“The FBI says online scammers are taking advantage of personal information left behind on abandoned or forgotten social media profiles.” expressed the FBI

Understanding the distinction between deactivation and deletion is crucial. Deactivation merely hides your profile from public view while preserving all your data on the company’s servers. Even proper deletion may not fully erase your digital footprint, as residual data and metadata can persist. More concerning is that third-party applications you’ve granted access to your accounts may have already copied and stored your information externally, beyond the reach of any deletion request you submit to the original platform.

Data Brokers: The Invisible Threat

While social media platforms represent the front lines of data vulnerability, specialized companies known as data brokers pose an additional threat. These entities compile extensive personal profiles by aggregating information from various online sources, including your social media activities. Data brokers collect, package, and sell personal information to marketers, researchers, and other businesses—operating largely outside public awareness. Even if you manage to completely delete a social media account, data brokers may have already captured and preserved that information.

Further complicating matters, personal information can remain accessible in search engine caches, archived websites, and public records databases long after the original source has been removed. This digital persistence means Americans must adopt a multi-layered approach to privacy protection rather than relying solely on account deletion. The interconnected nature of today’s digital ecosystem requires vigilance across multiple platforms and services to maintain effective control over personal information.

Practical Steps to Protect Your Identity

CBS News producer Alex Clark recommends several concrete steps Americans can take to minimize exposure from forgotten social media accounts. Begin by conducting a thorough audit of all platforms you’ve ever joined—even those you haven’t used in years. This process involves recovering access to old accounts, reviewing and strengthening privacy settings, and removing unnecessary personal information. For accounts you no longer use, initiate the formal deletion process rather than simply abandoning them. Remember that each platform has different procedures for permanent account removal.

Beyond account management, adopt the principle of data minimization in your online activities. Share only essential information when creating new accounts, avoid using social login features that connect platforms, and regularly monitor your digital footprint. Consider using specialized privacy tools that can help identify and remove personal information from data broker databases. For Americans concerned about comprehensive protection, services like PrivacyHawk offer systematic approaches to managing personal data across the digital landscape.

As identity theft continues to rise, understanding and controlling your digital footprint isn’t just good practice—it’s becoming essential self-defense. By taking proactive steps to secure or eliminate forgotten social media profiles, you can significantly reduce your vulnerability to increasingly sophisticated cybercriminals targeting America’s digital citizens.