Threads has been out for less than 24 hours, and already people are on Twitter complaining about a stipulation of the new platform—users can’t fully delete the data of their Threads accounts without deleting their Instagram account as well.
“I’ve been getting some questions about deleting your account. To clarify, you can deactivate your Threads account, which hides your Threads profile and content, you can set your profile to private, and you can delete individual Threads posts—all without deleting your Instagram account. Threads is powered by Instagram, so right now it’s just one account, but we’re looking into a way to delete your Threads account separately,” writes Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram.
When I tried to delete my Threads account after seeing the postings online, I found the deactivation process effortless. I opened Threads, navigated to the settings, and found the deactivation page. It specifies that my Instagram account will not be deleted. To reactivate, it’s even less work. It takes one click of the “Log In” button, showing my Instagram profile, and I’m back to the Threads feed.
It’s another story entirely if you’re looking to remove any trace of your Threads activity. There’s no delete function of any kind, and when you toggle to pages like “Personal Information” or “Download your Information,” you are directed to the Meta account settings page on Instagram.
Users can’t create a Threads account without having an Instagram in the first place, and there is the option to deactivate a Threads account, meaning the account is no longer available on the app for anyone to view or interact with.
But Meta retains your posts and data on its servers until a user fully deletes it.
When you delete your Threads profile, your content and profile will be hidden from view by other users, but it will remain on the Threads servers. Threads content will be deleted from Threads servers if you delete individual Threads content or your Instagram account, according to the Threads terms of use.
“At this time, you can’t delete your Threads profile without deleting your Instagram account. This is something we’re working on. In the meantime, you can deactivate your Threads profile at any time,” Meta told BBC and Newsweek.
If you choose to delete your Instagram account, then deletion of your Threads content from Threads servers may not occur until 90 days later, according to the terms of use.
“The fact that you have to delete your Instagram account to delete your threads profile and data is enough to make me not download it,” writes a user on Twitter.
The fact that you have to delete your instagram account to delete your threads profile and data is enough to make me not download it lol
— post rut clarity 🌻 (@quelsee) July 6, 2023
Another, who already apparently signed up, was similarly displeased: “We can’t delete our threads account without deleting our Instagram? They knew people would instantly hate it so they made it a saw trap.”
We can’t delete our threads account without deleting our ig?? They knew ppl would instantly hate it so they made it a saw trap
— laura 🦠 (@ecto_fun) July 6, 2023
Whether the stipulation is an attempt to let users return to the app more easily or a means to blackmail them into keeping them on Threads, it’s Meta’s way of making Threads an extension of Instagram.
It also might come as no surprise that it collects a significant amount of data from users, according to the Apple App Store’s app privacy section.
Threads has amassed a significant following, with 10 million signups after seven hours. With those numbers, some are saying it might be a record-setter for the fastest-growing consumer offering. It took ChatGPT nearly five days to reach 1 million users, according to Statista.