Have you been using Facebook for a long time but now want to take a break? You have three options to choose from. You can log out of your Facebook account, deactivate the account, or simply delete your Facebook account. The question is what will you choose to do and why? To clear out this confusion, you need to understand what logging out, deactivating, and deleting Facebook accounts do in the background.
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What Is Log Out, Deactivate, and Delete on Facebook
Log Out: It is basically a tool to safely end your current session which disconnects you from Facebook till the time you log back in. This is how Facebook ensures you end your session the right way and then return for more.
Deactivate: This lets you leave Facebook temporarily, meaning if you don’t want to use Facebook for some time but may return to it later, then you will be able to do so. It’s like closing the door of your house and locking it as well. So you will let it be until you need something from that room and go there again.
Delete: It is only to be used in cases when you’ve decided to not use Facebook anymore. Ever. So now you completely delete your data from the Facebook servers. Understand it this way, the room is no more. You’ve cleared out the room’s contents and vacated the property forever.
Now let’s go through each option in depth.
Log Out of Facebook Account
Logging out of your Facebook account is generally preferred when you are using someone else’s PC or mobile to check your account or you’re on a guest machine, browsing for a quick session. It is always recommended that you log out of your Facebook account to prevent it from unauthorized access and misuse.
Here are a few situations that can help you to decide when you should log out of Facebook:
- If you were using your Facebook account on a guest computer then it’s possible that you completely forgot about logging out after your use.
- The most natural thing can also be that you upgraded your computer or mobile to a newer model and forgot to log out of Facebook on older mobile or PC.
- It’s a possibility that you checked your Facebook account updates on a friend’s phone and then forgot to log out.
- It could be that you logged into a website or a game using your Facebook account and then forgot about that session.
Here is everything that happens when you log out of your Facebook account. To summarise, you will still appear in people’s searches. They can share your profile, message you, and send you friend requests.
Deactivating Your Facebook Account
Preparing for that big task coming up ahead that needs your full concentration? The chances are you might be distracted from the task at hand due to Facebook a bit too much. In that case, you can deactivate your Facebook account for a short time. It essentially will close your account temporarily until you decide to log back in. After your work is done, you can continue from where you left off by simply logging back in.
By deactivating your Facebook account, you won’t appear in any Facebook searches and no one else will be able to see your profile anymore. Messages that you send to friends will still be visible to them. Your friends will still be able to see your name in their friend’s list and if you’re in any groups, the group admins will still be able to see your comments and posts.
If you have Messenger installed along with Facebook, then you can still chat with your friends even if you’ve deactivated your Facebook account. Messenger is a standalone app separate from Facebook. Other people may be able to search for you to send a message as well. Along with this, your Facebook profile picture will be visible to others in your conversations on Messenger.
Deleting Your Facebook Account
Imagine this. You’ve been using Facebook for a long time and don’t want to be bothered with it anymore. It has lost its charm. There are better or more interesting options out there. You’re sure that you won’t be returning this time and want to completely delete your data from Facebook servers.
That is when you may want to delete your Facebook account. The thing to keep in mind here is that you won’t be able to recover your data ever. Contacting Facebook support will also not yield any results. The key point here is that even if you permanently delete your account, messages sent from your account to others will still be saved in their accounts. But now they will be referred to as Facebook User in other people’s accounts.
If you want to distance yourself from Facebook permanently, then deleting your Facebook account could be the ideal solution.
To protect your interests, Facebook does not execute the delete command right away. Instead, you get a few days time during which you can log back in again using your login details. Once you log in, your deletion request will be canceled automatically.
Note: You might want to download your Facebook profile data before deleting your account. It includes your posts, images, locations, and more.
Face the Book of Truth
As long as you log out of your Facebook sessions, your account should stay safe from misuse and unintended access. Still, if you feel like you’re distracted a bit too much, then you should contemplate deactivating your Facebook account. But if you’ve decided to leave the platform forever and for good and don’t want to return, then deleting your Facebook account is the only option.
